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June 19th,
2007 - Analysis: US-Iraqi Assault in Diyala Video: Firefight
between Insurgents and U.S. Troops in Diyala Province |
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Analysis: US-Iraqi Assault
in Diyala By Jim Muir BBC News June 19, 2007 The new operation launched
by American and Iraqi troops in Diyala province and its capital Baquba, just
north of Baghdad, is one of the biggest campaigns undertaken by US troops
since the invasion in 2003. Codenamed Arrowhead Ripper,
the operation involves some 10,000 troops - probably around 6,000 US and
4,000 Iraqis - lifted in by helicopters and backed by massive firepower in the
shape of tanks, artillery and close air support. The first focus of the
operation seemed to be on the western quarters of Baquba itself, where
fighters from al-Qaeda and likeminded radical Sunni groups have become deeply
entrenched in recent months, with government control and services withering
away. First reports from the
US-led coalition said 22 "anti-Iraqi forces" had been "engaged
and killed" in the early hours of the assault, which began in earnest
overnight on Tuesday. An Iraqi military spokesman
later said that 11 "terrorists" had been killed and 21 arrested. 'Civilians trapped' There was no official
acknowledgement of civilian casualties. But the head of Baquba's
emergency services told the BBC not long after the operation began that at
least 12 civilians had been killed by the end of the first day, including
three women. He said that there were
certainly more civilian casualties, but ambulances were being prevented by US
troops from going in to evacuate them. A number of houses had been
destroyed, and there were fears that civilians might be trapped in the
rubble. People had been told by
Iraqi army loudspeakers to keep off the streets and stay indoors. Operation priorities The goal of the operation,
spelled out by the commander of coalition forces in the area, Brig Gen Mick
Bednarek, was "to destroy the al-Qaeda influences in this province and
eliminate their threat against the people". US military commanders made
it clear that this meant killing or capturing Sunni militants rather than
allowing them to escape, regroup and return once the heat was off, as has
happened elsewhere in the past. Part of the plan seems to be
to bring about a swift restoration of Iraqi government services and
activities, which have been virtually suspended in some areas for months,
with provincial council budgets largely unspent. One of the priorities, Gen
Bednarek said, would be "getting the Iraqi ministries engaged to provide
fundamental goods and services, such as food, fuel, displaced persons
support, and education". 'Anti-al-Qaeda council' The collapse of state
services left a vacuum which insurgents were able to exploit in Baquba, just
as both Shia and Sunni factions have done - and continue to do - in parts of
Baghdad. Filling that vacuum with
state authority will clearly be a crucial part of the campaign to prevent the
insurgents from staging a comeback once the focus has moved on. In Baquba, US forces had
also already been pursuing a tactic which has apparently paid off in Anbar
province, west of Baghdad. Insurgent activity in Anbar
has dropped off noticeably since some of the local Sunni tribes and groups
turned against the al-Qaeda-related radical Islamist factions, some of which
are believed to have moved over to Baquba and Diyala province as a result. A "Diyala Salvation
Council" has been established, similar to that set up by Sunni tribal
leaders in Anbar, to resist al-Qaeda and support the government. Some former insurgents from
nationalist Sunni groups - such as the 1920 Revolution Brigade - are reported
to have been armed by the US military in exchange for co-operation against
the outside Islamist militants. 'Surge' in Baghdad US officials are clearly
hoping that a combination of vigorous military action, the revival of
government services and bringing on board hitherto alienated sections of
local Sunni opinion may succeed in keeping the hardcore Sunni radicals out. The Diyala campaign is part
of a broader strategy of tackling a whole belt of territory circling Baghdad,
into which it is believed some of the activity of both Sunni insurgents and
Shia militias has been displaced by the four-month-old security
"surge" in the capital, now coming to its peak. Although US troop levels, at
around 160,000, are now as high as at any time since the invasion, American
commanders say it will be some time before the effect is felt. The American ambassador, and
the commander of US forces, are to report to Washington in September with a
preliminary assessment of how the plan is going, in both military and political
terms. The stated aim of the
"surge" is to "buy time" for Iraqi leaders to take steps
towards national reconciliation, which have been slow in coming. US commanders admit the
crackdown has yet to achieve many of its objectives. As the latest bomb attack in
Baghdad - the most deadly for over two months - underlined, the
"surge" has not managed to prevent bombers from carrying out
spectacular outrages. The number of bodies being
found in the streets of the capital, believed to be mainly those of Sunnis
abducted, tortured and killed by Shia militias, has also been on the rise
again, after dipping in March and April. Police said that in the past
24 hours, 21 bodies had been found. On some recent days, the number has been
30 or above. Before the surge, it was often above 50. External link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6769391.stm |