Posted on 03/30/2003 9:29:02 AM PST by demlosers
The CIA has put out contracts on Saddam Hussein's closest associates, top members of Iraq's Socialist Baath Party, and commanders of the elite Republican Guard.
Teams of trained assassins from the CIA and the Pentagon's special operations units are prowling around inside Iraq, seeking to put members of the country's top leadership in the crosshairs of their sniperscopes.
According to the Washington Post, the U.S. hit teams, some armed with sniper rifles and others with explosives including car bombs and other demolition devices, have already whacked several targets over the past week, since being inserted behind the lines.
While CIA officials refused to comment on the operation, Pentagon spokeswoman Victoria Clarke told the Post, "As we have said before, we have Special Forces in the north, west and south of the country."
Says the Post: "As conventional U.S. and British forces have encountered fiercer than expected Iraqi resistance, the CIA and the Pentagon's covert units are under increasing pressure to fire the 'silver bullet' that will kill Hussein and bring down his government, thereby bringing the ground war to a quick conclusion. The agencies have stepped up a fierce psychological operations campaign to rattle key members of Hussein's government in an effort to get them to turn on the Iraqi leader."
An insider told the Post that some of the explosions seen by TV cameras in Baghdad are not the result of aerial bombs and missiles. The source hinted that some were the result of explosives planted by the teams.
Saddam and his murderous henchmen aren't the only targets of the U.S. operatives. Al-Qaeda and other members of the terrorist leadership are also sought for termination with extreme prejudice, the Post notes.
The CIA, for example, has a hit list of about 30 "high value target" terrorists, and has assigned paramilitary teams, sometimes working in tandem with covert military units such as Delta Force, to track down, capture or kill these individuals, most of whom are members of the al-Qaeda organization, according to the Post.
When you can't get 'em in open battle, it seems, send for a guy named Vito.
Bounty hunting on steroids. I LOVE IT!!
The CIA has been in Iraq for a loooooooong time now, and has been an integral part of the battle plan from day one.
This is great. I wonder if these slime bags are getting e mail notes telling them their days are numbered?
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