thedrifter
05-13-07, 06:46 AM
US and Iraqi troops hunt three missing comrades
by Dave Clark
Sun May 13, 3:15 AM ET
American and Iraqi troops were scouring fields and palm groves on Sunday in massive search operation for three missing comrades amid fears they have been kidnapped by Iraqi insurgents.
Squads of soldiers threw up checkpoints in rural areas south and west of the capital known as insurgent strongholds, one day after the three disappeared after pre-dawn attack that left five troops dead.
US helicopters and jets were also scrambled to join the hunt.
"Make no mistake: we will never stop looking for our soldiers until their status is definitively determined, and we continue to pray for their safe return," US spokesman Major General William Caldwell said on Saturday.
A squad of seven US soldiers and an Iraqi army interpreter was attacked on Saturday 20 kilometres (12 miles) west of Mahmudiyah, a restive town south of the capital, Caldwell said.
"As a result of this attack, five soldiers were killed in action and three are currently missing," he said, without indicating whether the dead were all US soldiers or whether the Iraqi interpreter was among those killed.
"At the time of the attack, a nearby unit heard explosions and attempted to establish communications, but without success," he said in a statement.
"Coalition forces arrived within an hour, secured the site, and immediately initiated a search. The names of the soldiers are being withheld pending final identification and notification of next of kin," he said.
Mahmudiyah is 30 kilometres (19 miles) south of Baghdad in an area of farmland and palm groves known as an insurgent stronghold. Since the US-led invasion of March 2003 the region has been nicknamed the "Triangle of Death."
US marines patrolling west of Baghdad near the Sunni city of Fallujah told an AFP reporter travelling with them that they had been told the missing soldiers were thought to have been captured.
"Checkpoints have been established throughout the area in a concerted effort to focus the search and prevent potential movement of missing soldiers out of the area," Caldwell's statement said.
"Coalition forces have engaged with local leaders to enlist their support in providing any information they can, and these engagements continue."
Iraqi security forces said they had shot dead a "terrorist" in Mahmudiyah on Saturday, but it was not clear whether this was linked to the earlier attack.
While US forces in Baghdad and west and central Iraq come under attack daily from roadside bombs, snipers and guerrilla fighters, it is rare for insurgents to succeed in capturing American personnel.
Nevertheless, Al-Qaeda in Iraq -- a Sunni group that has posted Internet videos of slain American and Iraqi hostages -- has made it clear that capturing US service members is a priority.
Shiite militants have also captured Americans in the past.
On January 20, gunmen disguised in US army uniforms breezed past security checks and attacked a provincial security building in central Iraq's Karbala province during a visit by American troops to their Iraqi counterparts.
One US soldier was killed and four more were captured. Their bodies were later found with the attackers' abandoned SUV vehicles, along with disguises and US-style weapons and radios.
In June 2006 an Al-Qaeda-linked website said the group's alleged leader -- known under the nom de guerre "Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajer" -- had ordered the killing of two kidnapped American soldiers.
The two US soldiers were later found south of Baghdad, their bodies showing signs of brutal torture, according to the Iraqi defence ministry.
US army Sergeant Ahmed Qusai al-Taie, an Iraqi-born American soldier, went missing last October 23 after leaving the heavily-guarded Green Zone without permission in order to visit his wife at a family home in Baghdad.
He has never been found and is believed to be held by a Shiite gang.
Ellie
by Dave Clark
Sun May 13, 3:15 AM ET
American and Iraqi troops were scouring fields and palm groves on Sunday in massive search operation for three missing comrades amid fears they have been kidnapped by Iraqi insurgents.
Squads of soldiers threw up checkpoints in rural areas south and west of the capital known as insurgent strongholds, one day after the three disappeared after pre-dawn attack that left five troops dead.
US helicopters and jets were also scrambled to join the hunt.
"Make no mistake: we will never stop looking for our soldiers until their status is definitively determined, and we continue to pray for their safe return," US spokesman Major General William Caldwell said on Saturday.
A squad of seven US soldiers and an Iraqi army interpreter was attacked on Saturday 20 kilometres (12 miles) west of Mahmudiyah, a restive town south of the capital, Caldwell said.
"As a result of this attack, five soldiers were killed in action and three are currently missing," he said, without indicating whether the dead were all US soldiers or whether the Iraqi interpreter was among those killed.
"At the time of the attack, a nearby unit heard explosions and attempted to establish communications, but without success," he said in a statement.
"Coalition forces arrived within an hour, secured the site, and immediately initiated a search. The names of the soldiers are being withheld pending final identification and notification of next of kin," he said.
Mahmudiyah is 30 kilometres (19 miles) south of Baghdad in an area of farmland and palm groves known as an insurgent stronghold. Since the US-led invasion of March 2003 the region has been nicknamed the "Triangle of Death."
US marines patrolling west of Baghdad near the Sunni city of Fallujah told an AFP reporter travelling with them that they had been told the missing soldiers were thought to have been captured.
"Checkpoints have been established throughout the area in a concerted effort to focus the search and prevent potential movement of missing soldiers out of the area," Caldwell's statement said.
"Coalition forces have engaged with local leaders to enlist their support in providing any information they can, and these engagements continue."
Iraqi security forces said they had shot dead a "terrorist" in Mahmudiyah on Saturday, but it was not clear whether this was linked to the earlier attack.
While US forces in Baghdad and west and central Iraq come under attack daily from roadside bombs, snipers and guerrilla fighters, it is rare for insurgents to succeed in capturing American personnel.
Nevertheless, Al-Qaeda in Iraq -- a Sunni group that has posted Internet videos of slain American and Iraqi hostages -- has made it clear that capturing US service members is a priority.
Shiite militants have also captured Americans in the past.
On January 20, gunmen disguised in US army uniforms breezed past security checks and attacked a provincial security building in central Iraq's Karbala province during a visit by American troops to their Iraqi counterparts.
One US soldier was killed and four more were captured. Their bodies were later found with the attackers' abandoned SUV vehicles, along with disguises and US-style weapons and radios.
In June 2006 an Al-Qaeda-linked website said the group's alleged leader -- known under the nom de guerre "Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajer" -- had ordered the killing of two kidnapped American soldiers.
The two US soldiers were later found south of Baghdad, their bodies showing signs of brutal torture, according to the Iraqi defence ministry.
US army Sergeant Ahmed Qusai al-Taie, an Iraqi-born American soldier, went missing last October 23 after leaving the heavily-guarded Green Zone without permission in order to visit his wife at a family home in Baghdad.
He has never been found and is believed to be held by a Shiite gang.
Ellie