Joint Effort With Iraqi Army Nets Insurgent Arrests
The Coalition Soldiers working with the Iraqi Army have arrested a number of terror suspects in the area near Balad. Acting on a tip from the Sons of Iraq, the Iraqi Special Forces troops moved in, with their U.S. Special Forces Brethren on their side, moving against a house suspected of being a terror safe haven.
The suspected leader of a 15 – 20 man insurgent cell was arrested, as were three of his fellow terrorist suspects. This group was believed to be responsible for attacks over the last six months against Iraqi government locations, as well as attacks on Coalition troops working on patrol in the area. The Balad area has been one of especially difficult operations for Coalition and Iraqi security forces, with a number of cells that have apparently eluded capture up until recently. The safe house that was raided on Monday yielded several hundred pounds of explosives, IED devices and a number of grenades.
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The Iraqi Army Special forces unit has been more active, as a result of both real life and training missions with their Coalition counterparts. As a result, the overall tempo of security and safety has increased in the Balad Area dramatically, with businesses beginning to reopen, and villagers feeling safe to venture out onto the streets. Much of this has been due to Iraqi Army efforts, and the efforts of the citizens themselves such as members of the Sons of Iraq units.
