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U.S. forces kill Al Qaida bomber as he flees
safe house

BAGHDAD — The U.S. military has reported the killing of a senior Al Qaida leader during a June 5 operation in Baghdad.

The operative was said to have been the commander of the Al Jamah area of Baghdad and a member of a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device cell.

The operative was identified as Mohammed Mahmoud Abd Kazim Hussein Al Mashadani, or Abu Abdullah. Officials said Al Mashadani was identified by his associates detained during the raid, Middle East Newsline reported.

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U.S. forces were said to have located Al Mashadani's safe house. The military said Iraqi and U.S. troops raided the building, and Al Mashadani was killed as he sought to escape.

"A key link in the VBIED network has been removed," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Christopher Garver said.

Officials said the killing of Al Mashadani was enabled by increasing cooperation from Iraqi Sunnis. They said the strongest resistance to Al Qaida has been in the Anbar province, where Sunni tribes have become aligned with the Baghdad government.

"The locals are standing up against Al Qaida and separating themselves from them," U.S. chief military spokesman Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner said.

In a briefing on Wednesday, Bergner said Sunnis in the mixed Baghdad neighborhood of Al Mayirah, themselves the victims of Al Qaida, were cooperating with the central government. Bergner said Iraqi government and coalition officials have been encouraged by the trend.

"We've seen the courage of the Iraqi people as they stand up to Al Qaida," Bergner said. "The coalition forces have more troops going to more places, making more contacts, and we are contesting places we haven't been for some time. It's going to get harder before it gets easier."

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