In Iraq, U.S. airstrikes target insurgents near supposedly safe zone

[Barrett808]

Source: McClatchy Newspapers

In Iraq, U.S. airstrikes target insurgents near supposedly safe zone
By Jamie Gumbrecht and Nancy A. Youssef | McClatchy Newspapers

BAGHDAD — The U.S. military dropped 40,000 pounds of explosives southeast of Baghdad on Thursday in a series of airstrikes that underscored the tenuousness of U.S. progress against Islamic extremists in Iraq.

The targets were near the town of Arab Jabour, a Sunni Muslim-dominated district on Baghdad's outskirts that American officials recently held up as a security success and an example of how local Sunni tribesmen known as "concerned local citizens" had turned against al Qaida in Iraq.

But Thursday's air attack indicated that the area still has a considerable Sunni militant presence. The statement said that more than 40 targets in three large areas were hit during two passes by two supersonic B-1 bombers and four F-16 fighter jets. A U.S. military official in the area said the targets were al Qaida in Iraq weapons caches and bomb-making materials.

The blitz dropped 38 bombs in its first 10 minutes, the statement said.

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq/story/24598.html

[stillcool]

1. 40,000 lbs. of bombs...

you would think that would get just about everybody.

[pingzing58]

2. It is possible that the Sunni/US collaborators informed the US of the position of these al qaeda.

It seems that Iraqis don't want to live under sharia law with extremists running the country. Good for them and realizing that with their permission and collaboration our forces can rid them of the al qaeda scourge and the sooner they do that the sooner they will be masters of their own household and move on to benefit from the oil profits.

[LynnTheDem]

10. Yes, good for those those little brown people

for "realizing that with their permission and collaboration our forces can rid them of the al qaeda scourge" and become "masters of their own household".

[MetaTrope]

3. Should have read "In Iraq, U.S. airstrikes supposedly target insurgents"

[annm4peace]

4. Anyone have a link to the videoof the bombing

anyone have a list of children killed in thsi bombing.

I'm so tired of this shit.

[Sodbuster]

5. I read another account that said

that soldiers were able to find AK-47's and documents from the two houses that they targeted. Kinda like finding a passport with the picture and name of one of the hijackers in the rubble after 9/11...... Impressive detective work.

[LynnTheDem]

11. ROTFL!!!

That's clever sarcasm!

[Bonobo]

6. Wow! 40,000 pounds of surgical strikes! Damn, we're good!

And all we hit was that cache of Al Quaeda weapons!

[Viva_La_Revolution]

7. no civilian casualties reported...

move along... move along.. nothing to see here folks...

[Nihil]

8. You should know by now ...

... the rules of the game are simple:

Civilians "live" (in their new-found freedom).
Human shields & hostages get "wounded" (side-effect of providing freedom).
Terrorists, Al-Qaeda & Insurgents are "killed".

Hence, there cannot be unbiased reports of "civilian casualties" as such.

(From "The Imperium's Guide to Media Briefings".)

[LynnTheDem]

9. bombing what "American officials recently held up as a security success"

Only a complete and utter fool would ever believe a single word from America ever again.