Al Qaeda strikes in Iraq's North

The Long War Journa ^ | January 25, 2008 | Bill Roggio

[gpapa]

The northern city of Mosul has been racked with violence the past two days as al Qaeda's Islamic State of Iraq has stepped up terror activities in the city. Two major bombings in Mosul have claimed dozens killed, including Ninewa province's police chief, and more than 100 wounded.

The major activity began on Jan. 23, when Iraqi troops raided a suspected weapons factory and storage site in a residential neighborhood. Al Qaeda in Iraq detonated the building with pre-positioned explosives, killing 34 Iraqis and wounding another 135. Most of those killed and wounded were in adjacent buildings that collapsed in the explosion.

The following day, a suicide bomber targeted the site of the blast as the rescue and recovery team was pulling survivors from the rubble. Brigadier Salih Hassan, the Ninewa province chief of police, was killed in the attack. The provincial governor declared a curfew shortly after the suicide bombing.

The suicide bomber was dressed like an Iraqi policeman, a senior US military officer serving in Mosul told The Long War Journal. The officer requested his name not be used due to the sensitivity of his position. The site was targeted because it is a "magnet for VIPs."

[do the dhue]

We still have work to do and losing our resolve is not an option.

[jveritas]

Mosul is the final refuge of what is left of Al Qaeda defeated forces. The terrorists will be annihilated right there.