Hunting Hussein Led U.S. to Insurgent Hub - Five Families Believed to Direct Attacks

Washington Post ^

[Happy2BMe]

TIKRIT, Iraq -- As U.S. forces tracked Saddam Hussein to his subterranean hiding place, they unearthed a trove of intelligence about five families running the Iraqi insurgency, according to U.S. military commanders, who said the information is being used to uproot remaining resistance forces.

[Happy2BMe]

Perhaps some of the less favorite wives chose to express their gratitude?

[Happy2BMe]

At the heart of this tightly woven network is Auja, Hussein's birthplace, which U.S. commanders say is the intelligence and communications hub of the insurgency. The village is where many of the former president's key confidants have their most lavish homes and their favorite wives.

Perhaps a select few of the "less favorite wives" decided to show their gratitude ping!

[woofie]

Dean is wrong.... we (including the brave US military who are stationed in Iraq) are a lot safer with Saddam out of his hole and into our hands

[Sabertooth]

Hey, very well done.

By linking to the printer version of the article, you've bypassed the Washington Post's "Free Republic Filter," thus enabling us to read the article without logging into the WPost.

Very, very cool. Slick and easy.

If this has been accomplished before, I was not aware of it. Pinging everyone.

[sheik yerbouty]

The five families/ "It was barzini all along."

[Samwise]

But...but...there's no connection to Iraq and terrorism. The people of Iraq were better off with Saddam. Americans are no safer now. Bush is just a big dumb, bully, and he should quit picking on dictators and tyrants.

[Happy2BMe]

The Inner Circle

A trusted lieutenant of Hussein, who ultimately pointed U.S. interrogators to the former president's hideout, was one of at least five brothers in Hussein's inner circle, Army officers said. Though U.S. officials have not released the informant's name, they described him as a senior officer in Hussein's elite Special Security Organization with roots in the village of Abu Ajeel, just north of Tikrit.

A longtime confidant, this senior security official emerged as Hussein's "right arm" after U.S. forces captured Hussein's personal secretary, Abid Hamid Mahmud Tikriti, in June, a U.S. military officer said. Tikriti was not replaced, and his duties as Hussein's de facto chief of staff were divided among those in the inner circle, in particular the senior security official and his brothers. The official served as a direct liaison between Hussein and the broader resistance organization.

Hussein himself was a rallying symbol, an irreplaceable "icon," according to Col. James Hickey, whose 1st Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division captured him. But U.S. commanders said they had no evidence that the former president, who moved from one safe house to another and rarely stayed longer than a week in one place, played a role in directing the insurgency.

The loyalists with access to Hussein numbered no more than 40, including those who cooked for him and the drivers who transported him between his estimated 30 hideaways in aging taxis, pickups and riverboats, according to U.S. intelligence estimates.

These inner-circle loyalists, largely middle-aged men referred to by U.S. officers as the "42-inch waistband guys," usually insulate themselves from capture by keeping their distance from attacks on U.S. and allied troops. To avoid detection, they rarely travel with weapons or large amounts of money, slipping to clandestine meetings at modest farmhouses and nondescript cafes.

Their underlings are trusted members of their own families, which can number in the hundreds because men in this region of Iraq frequently take more than one wife and may father more than a dozen children.

Below the top tier are the mid-level operatives who organize specific attacks on U.S. and allied forces, providing arms and arranging financing. At the lowest level are the fighters, who U.S. officials said carry out the ambushes, prepare bombs and fire mortars in return for payments of $250 to $1,000, getting bonuses when they succeed in causing casualties.

[gg188]

the "42-inch waistband guys,"

Now wait just one minute....I don't know how to take that!

[Cindy]

GOOGLE Search Term: "Izzat Ibrahim"
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22Izzat+Ibrahim%22%0D%0A&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=0

GOOGLE Search Term: "Izzat"
http://www.google.com/search?q=Izzat%22+%0D%0A&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=0

GOOGLE Search Term: "al Duri"
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22al+Duri%22&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=0

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

The interrogations and documents uncovered in the raids, coupled with electronic and other intelligence, repeatedly revealed the involvement of the same extended families and marked the way toward the inner circle.

He he he he

[Victoria Delsoul]

Bumpity, bump, bump, bump! Thanks so much for the link.

[Happy2BMe]

"Now wait just one minute....I don't know how to take that!"

It may help you feel better all the 42" waist guys had camel breath.

:~)

[Sabertooth]

Bumpity, bump, bump, bump!

Four?

[Happy2BMe]

Did you notice these pukes averaged 12 kids apiece!

[capitan_refugio]

"Very, very cool. Slick and easy."

"Put Neidermeyer on it. He's a sneaky little shit just like you." - Animal House

[Gracey]

Thank you so much for pinging me to this incredible article.

I hope the "Hopeless 9 1/2" pick up a copy today.

[sleavelessinseattle]

some local guerrillas are demanding higher pay

LOL, I would imagine spiralling life insurance premiums have impacted the Guerilla's salary negotiations of late. BTTT!

[farmfriend]

Cool, wonder if this works with the LA Times as well?

[Sabertooth]

Haven't checked it out. I'm quite behind the curve, apparently.

[JohnHuang2]

Thanks for the ping, and Merry Christmas, good buddy.