U.S., Iraqi Troops Find Weapons Caches
By Associated Press
4 hours ago
BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. and Iraqi troops found 14 weapons caches and detained 140 suspects in a week, focusing on mainly Shiite eastern Baghdad in the initial phase of a security sweep to end the violence in the capital, the military said Sunday.
More than 7,400 patrols and 34 operations were conducted in the week of Feb. 3-9, said U.S. Brig. Gen. John Campbell, the deputy commander of American forces in Baghdad.
He said he was encouraged by the early results.
"With the cache finds this week, the detentions we've made and creating a larger presence on Baghdad streets with the establishment of another combat outpost, we are making headway with the Baghdad security plan," Campbell said. "This is only the beginning."
The chief military spokesman, Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell, said Wednesday that the much-anticipated Baghdad security operation was under way. His remarks came about a month after President Bush announced he was dispatching 21,500 more troops to curb sectarian bloodletting.
Under the plan, Baghdad is to be divided into nine zones, with Iraqi and American soldiers working side-by-side to clear each sector of Shiite militias and Sunni insurgents so that reconstruction programs can begin in safety.
Campbell stressed that about half of the patrols were conducted by Iraqi police, while 20 of the operations were joint and 14 were led by U.S. troops.
The U.S. military is eager to show Iraqi forces are taking the lead in the security plan since the Americans believe that is key to allowing them to leave.
Campbell said most military activity so far in the operation has been the eastern side of the Tigris River, which includes the Shiite militia stronghold of Sadr City.
"We're addressing that area with increased security forces and patrols," he said in a statement.
Units of the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team and Iraqi security forces also have established a combat outpost in Azamiyah, a predominantly Sunni area on the eastern side of the river. The outpost appears aimed preventing Shiite militias from staging attacks on Sunnis there.
Another post has been set up by the U.S. 2nd Division in Kazimiyah, a Shiite neighborhood across the river from Azamiyah.
The latest plan is the third effort to secure the capital since Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki took office on May 20.
The military also stressed that humanitarian and economic efforts were ongoing, including a new business center opened at the Baghdad International Airport and the opening on Feb. 5 of a high school for girls in Taji, north of the capital.
