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US forces launch massive new operation to stem insurgency
Camp Boom, Iraq, June 29: US forces launched a massive operation today to crush insurgents and capture senior figures from Saddam Hussein`s ousted regime in a show of force designed to stem a wave of deadly attacks on US troops.
Camp Boom, Iraq, June 29: US forces launched a massive operation today to crush insurgents and capture senior figures from Saddam Hussein's ousted regime in a show of force designed to stem a wave of deadly attacks on US troops.
The operation, dubbed "Desert Sidewinder,'' is taking place in a huge swath of central Iraq stretching from the Iranian border to the areas north of Baghdad, and is expected to last for several days, military officials said.
Americans arrested a man in Khalis, 70 km north of Baghdad, suspected of recruiting young men to launch attacks on Americans, according to military officials.
In Dojima, an upscale town where Sunni Muslim residents recently polished the still-standing portrait of Saddam Hussein, police raided the homes of alleged Saddam loyalists they suspected of hiding caches of arms, including rocket-propelled grenades - the weapon of choice in many recent ambushes.
There was no immediate word on whether any of Iraq's most wanted had been arrested.
"Desert Sidewinder'' kicked off today with officers simultaneously raiding as many sites as possible, according to the military officials in Camp Boom near Baqouba, 50 km northeast of Baghdad.
"We go in with such overwhelming combat power that they won't even think about shooting us,'' Lt. Col. Mark Young said before the start of the operation.
Bureau Report
Americans arrested a man in Khalis, 70 km north of Baghdad, suspected of recruiting young men to launch attacks on Americans, according to military officials.
In Dojima, an upscale town where Sunni Muslim residents recently polished the still-standing portrait of Saddam Hussein, police raided the homes of alleged Saddam loyalists they suspected of hiding caches of arms, including rocket-propelled grenades - the weapon of choice in many recent ambushes.
There was no immediate word on whether any of Iraq's most wanted had been arrested.
"Desert Sidewinder'' kicked off today with officers simultaneously raiding as many sites as possible, according to the military officials in Camp Boom near Baqouba, 50 km northeast of Baghdad.
"We go in with such overwhelming combat power that they won't even think about shooting us,'' Lt. Col. Mark Young said before the start of the operation.
Bureau Report