U.S. Troops Capture Lieutenant of Al-Sadr

Yahoo news ^ | 5/36/04 | ROBERT H. REID, AP

[kattracks]

BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. troops captured a key lieutenant of radical Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr during overnight clashes in Najaf that killed 24 people and wounded nearly 50, hospital and militia officials said.

Riyadh al-Nouri, al-Sadr's brother-in-law, offered no resistance when American troops raided his home during a series of clashes in this Shiite holy city, according to Azhar al-Kinani, a staffer in al-Sadr's office in Najaf.

The capture of al-Nouri would be a major blow to al-Sadr's al-Mahdi Army, which has been battling coalition forces since early April. Al-Sadr launched his uprising in response to a crackdown by coalition authorities who announced an arrest warrant against him in the April 2003 assassination of a moderate cleric in Najaf.

Al-Nouri was also sought in the 2003 killing.

Also Wednesday, masked gunmen opened fire on a convoy taking Russian technicians to work at a Baghdad power station, killing two and wounding at least five, Iraqi and Russian officials said. It was only the latest attack on employees with the Interenergoservis company.

In Moscow, the executive director of the company, Alexander Rybinsky, said Wednesday the firm would evacuate all its staff from Iraq (news - web sites). The attacks on the Russians could be an attempt to undermine international efforts to rebuild the country, since Russian expertise has played an important role in reviving Iraq's electricity industry and other infrastructure.

Elsewhere, the Polish command said a coalition base outside of Karbala, 50 miles north of Najaf, came under mortar fire late Tuesday. Demolition teams also defused three roadside bombs in the area, a spokesman for the Polish-led multinational force said Wednesday.

The mortar rounds were fired at Camp Kilo, where mostly Bulgarian troops are based, Maj. Slawomir Walenczykowski said. The attack resulted in no injuries or damage.

Fighting escalated in Shiite areas south of Baghdad in early April after al-Sadr launched an uprising against the U.S.-run occupation. Al-Sadr is sought in the April 2003 assassination of a moderate cleric in Najaf.

Al-Sadr's fighters have cleared out of Karbala following weeks of heavy clashes with U.S. and coalition forces. But clashes persist in Najaf and its twin city Kufa.

During the clashes overnight, militants fired rocket propelled grenades and mortars during three hours of skirmishes that ended about dawn, residents said. Some exchanges of fire were also reported around the city's Revolution of 1920 Square.

Fighting around some of the holiest cities of Shia Islam has angered many Shiites in Iraq and elsewhere and has led to calls for both the Americans and the militiamen to pull back from the shrines.

On Tuesday, the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf received slight damage. Both U.S. and Shiite forces blamed the other for the damage.

In the ambush on the Russian workers, police said the group was traveling in a bus when they were attacked about a few hundred yards from the Dora power station in southwestern Baghdad. One Iraqi was also killed, police said.

The wounded were taken to Yarmouk Hospital, where Dr. Adham Saadoun said some were in serious condition.

It was the second fatal attack against employees of Interenergoservis this month. On May 10, a group of Russian workers was seized after their vehicle came under attack in Musayyib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad. A third worker was killed in the attack.

Three Russian and five Ukrainian employees of Interenergoservis were abducted in Iraq last month, but were released unharmed the next day.

In Moscow, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it had repeatedly warned Russians of the dangers of living in Iraq, where violence is on the rise ahead of the return of sovereignty June 30.

The ministry blamed the deteriorating situation on the failure of the U.S.-run occupation authority "to guarantee the necessary security."

Attacks on infrastructure targets have stepped up in recent weeks. Bombings along key oil pipelines in northern and southern Iraq have resulted in temporary cutbacks in the export of petroleum — the key to reviving Iraq's economy.

U.S. troops opened fire on a car in downtown Kirkuk, killing a man and injuring his wife, an Iraqi police official said Wednesday. The Tuesday night shooting broke out five minutes after the nighttime curfew went into effect at 11 p.m., said Police Gen. Sherko Shakir. The couple's baby was also in the Fiat, but was not hurt, he said.

There was no comment from U.S. officials.

[DeaconRed]

"U.S. troops captured a key lieutenant of radical Shiite leader."

Bring on the babe wiff the leash.
Wait this time bring in a PIG make him kiss the PIG.
If we can't find a PIG TED KENNEDY will do.

[evad]

3 something else

We want to continue to kill off his minions.

[Coop]

Slow improvement in things over the coming months will be great, but that won't change the news war.

I disagree. All that really needs to occur, IMHO, is for the Iraq situation to get lost in the news, so to speak. Easier said than done, I realize (especially with an anti-American press), but I don't think Dubya needs great news from Iraq to win this election. He just needs to be able to get his message out.

However, I wouldn't mind Zarqawi being taken out in a very painful manner.

[evad]

OK, well exactly what would be just right. Since this guy may know how we can prevent some of our troops from being killed, it brings up a very interesting problem, does it not.

It does indeed..
the A-G prison scandal is certainly much more than improper interrogation procedures. But to answer your question, there is almost no limit to what should be done in the case of these terrorists to acquire information..
IMO.

I'm reminded of the officer that was put on display because he fired a weapon next to a prisoner's head in an effort to extract critical intel. I have no problem with what he did..in fact, I commend him.

[snooker]

Yeah and a corollary question is in hindsight what would have been the proper way to interrogate Muhammad Atta if he was captured say 2 months before 9/11 happened.

Makes for interesting thought. Especially for all the hand wringing connect the dots type on the 9/11 commission and in the media.

[AMNZ]

Oh Please - Don't mistreat him. #@*&#

[Cap Huff]

I hope you are right. In my more optimistic moments I think along those lines, but it has been a couple of very discouraging months, hasn't it?

[evad]

..the proper way to interrogate Muhammad Atta if he was captured say 2 months before 9/11 happened.

If we had serious belief that he was about to launch what did eventually happen on 9/11, it's whips, razor blades, drills and saws.

If that doesn't work, then we get rough.

Best case scenario=we get the intel we need..
Worst case scenario=one less terrorist a$$ hole.

[greasepaint]

GWB needs to start thinking about an exit strategy.

[Carcharodon]

I'm sure they are but the problem is that US forces are not able to get into the places where the bugs can work most effectively.

British intel fought the IRA to a stalemate largely by using surveillance technology - "jarking" - and so on. But they had the advantage of being able to get to the cars, houses, sheds etc that mattered. The US forces in Iraq do not.

The Iraqi fighters will pass instructions largely through word-of-mouth and couriers.

[snooker]

The problem is you don't know what he knows. Time adds clarity, that you don't have 2 months before the event.

So now what do you do? You don't even know which one knows anything. Do you treat all the prisoners and terrorists to the same fun and games?

Connecting the dots is not as easy as it looks. It's always easier to connect dots when you know what happened.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

AP recap, ping.

(Accuracy not yet verified by the good guys.)

[ohioWfan]

Ummmmmmmmm...........START thinking??

You missed his speech Monday, did you?

[Blood of Tyrants]

The ministry blamed the deteriorating situation on the failure of the U.S.-run occupation authority "to guarantee the necessary security."

Glad to see that all our enemies are on the same side.

[evad]

Do you treat all the prisoners and terrorists to the same fun and games?

Indeed, it is difficult to determine "what he knows" or if he know anything. And I'm no authority in interrogation procedures but my point is, whatever the best means for getting info is, I would not be encumbered by PC, etc..

Also note, I specifically referred to "these prisoners" and "If we had serious belief" in determining who should be dealt with in what manner.
I'm not in favor of whips, chains, saws and drills for everyone just in the hope of ferreting out a few.

Oh by the way, the first one that was nominated for the "supreme treatment", I'd tape it. Then I'd show it to Candidate #2 before he was about to get the nod. He may just do it the easy way instead of the hard way. I know it would run the risk of winding up on CNN or 60 minutes..but, I don't care. To get the info I would be willing to run that risk.

[Lunatic Fringe]

You can run, but you'll only die tired.

[TexKat]

U.S. Army soldiers inspect a bullet ridden mini bus after an attack on foreigners in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 26, 2004. A convoy with seven Russian workers was ambushed near a Baghdad power station, killing two of the foreigners and seriously injuring five, Iraqi police say. The Russian firm for whom the foreigners are working says it will evacuate all employees after second fatal attack in Iraq. (AP Photo/Mohammed Uraibi)

Iraqi workers stand near a damaged bus after it came under attack near the Al-Doura power plant in central Baghdad, May 26, 2004. Two employees of a Russian company working on a power plant in Iraq were killed and at least five of the colleagues were injured on Wednesday when their bus came under attack, officials said. REUTERS/Thaer Al-Sudani

U.S. Army soldiers inspect a bullet ridden mini bus after an attack on foreigners in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 26, 2004. A convoy with seven Russian workers was ambushed near a Baghdad power station, killing two of the foreigners and seriously injuring five, Iraqi police say. The Russian firm for whom the foreigners are working says it will evacuate all employees after second fatal attack in Iraq. (AP Photo/Mohammed Uraibi)

A U.S. Army soldier walks past the site of a suspected car bomb in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, May 26, 2004. Two Iraqis were killed and two policemen were injured, police sources said on Wednesday. REUTERS/Ceerwan Aziz

Iraqi children run as away from a burning street barricade at the entrance to the suburb of Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 26, 2004. The mostly poor Shia neighborhood of Sadr City, that has a large support base for radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, has witnessed almost daily armed clashes with the US army. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

US soldiers secure the area where a car bomb exploded in Baghdad. Three Iraqis were killed and 18 others wounded, including a senior police officer, when a car bomb exploded at Balad Ruz, 75 kilometres northeast of the Iraqi capital.(AFP/File/Ramzi Haidar)

U.S. Marine Richard Sullivan, from Chicago, Illinois, kneels while keeping patrol on a dirt road near Falluja, Iraq early May 26, 2004. REUTERS/Adrees Latif

Iraqis carry the coffin of militiaman Waleed Abdul Zahrah, 28, who was killed in overnight clashes between armed militiaman loyal to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and U.S. troops in Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, May 26, 2004. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for the ping!

[cookcounty]

"In Moscow, the executive director of the company, Alexander Rybinsky, said Wednesday the firm would evacuate all its staff from Iraq "

Didn't the Russians already have 5 evacuations?

[No Blue States]

"U.S. troops captured a key lieutenant of radical Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr during overnight clashes in Najaf"

Good, now MAKE him talk by any means.