The US and Iraq have claimed a major victory against al-Qaeda, saying their forces killed the terror group’s two top figures in this country in an air and ground assault on their safehouse near Saddam Hussein’s hometown.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on Monday announced the killings of Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub al-Masri at a news conference and showed photographs of their bloody corpses.
US military officials later confirmed the deaths, which US Vice President Joe Biden called a “potentially devastating blow” to al-Qaeda in Iraq.
The organization has proven resilient in the past, showing a remarkable ability to change tactics and adapt — most notably after its brutal founder, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was killed nearly four years ago in a US airstrike. Still, some analysts contend, the group was far stronger then and would likely have a harder time now replenishing its leadership and sticking to a timetable of attacks.
SIGNIFICANT BLOW
“The death of these terrorists is potentially the most significant blow to al-Qaeda in Iraq since the beginning of the insurgency,” General Raymond Odierno, the top US commander in Iraq, said in a statement.
Al-Qaeda in Iraq has remained a dangerous force as the US prepares to withdraw most of its troops. The terror group has launched repeated attacks on civilian targets in Baghdad in an attempt to sow chaos and exploit political deadlock in the wake of the inconclusive March 7 parliamentary elections.
Monday’s announcement comes at a critical time for al-Maliki, who has staked his reputation on being the man who can restore stability to Iraq after years of bloodshed. The prime minister is locked in a tight contest with secular challenger Ayad Allawi to see who will form the next government. Al-Maliki’s coalition trails Allawi’s bloc by two seats in the 325-seat parliament, and neither has yet been able to secure enough support from other parties to muster a majority.
Al-Maliki’s bid to keep the prime minister’s office received a second boost on Monday when Iraq’s election commission announced it would recount ballots cast in Baghdad, after complaints of fraud lodged by al-Maliki’s coalition. The recount could potentially give the his bloc more seats than Allawi’s.
Allawi has charged that Iraqi security forces have been unfocused since the election.
But Biden, US President Barack Obama’s point person on Iraq, said the deaths of the al-Qaeda leaders underscored their overall improvement.
IRAQI OPERATION
“The Iraqis led this operation, and it was based on intelligence the Iraqi security forces themselves developed,” said Biden, who came before reporters in the White House briefing room to draw added attention to the results.
US military officials have been highlighting the role of Iraqi security forces as US forces draw down. Under a plan outlined by Obama, all combat forces will be out of Iraq by the end of August, leaving about 50,000 US forces in the country in such roles as trainers and support personnel. Those forces will leave the country entirely by the end of next year.
The US military said the early Sunday raid that killed the two al-Qaeda leaders was launched after intelligence gathered during joint operations over the past week led security forces to the elusive leaders’ safehouse about 10km southwest of Tikrit.
Al-Maliki said ground forces surrounded the house and that rockets were fired from the air. The US military said a US UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashed during the assault, killing one US soldier and wounding three others; the crash was not believed to have been caused by enemy fire.
The two al-Qaeda leaders were inside the house. Al-Masri’s assistant and al-Baghdadi’s son, both suspected of being involved in terrorist attacks, also died in the raid and 16 other suspects were arrested, the military said.
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