BAGHDAD — In the first such operation, the U.S.-led coalition has
found and destroyed a Sunni insurgency camp in Iraq.
Iraqi and U.S. officials said Iraqi intelligence located the insurgency
camp about 170 kilometers northwest of Baghdad and 17 kilometers west of
Tikrit. A U.S.-Iraqi commando unit, backed by aircraft, attacked the
insurgency camp and killed 85 operatives under the command of elements loyal
to Saddam Hussein as well as Al Qaida.
"It was our most successful operation yet," an Iraqi official said. "For
the first time, we struck the nerve center of the Saddam insurgency."
The lakeside camp attacked on March 22 was located near Lake Tharthar in
the Sunni Triangle, Middle East Newsline reported. The camp, termed Ein Hilwe, was discovered through Iraqi
military intelligence and surveilled and struck by both Iraqi and U.S. units
in a joint operation. During the operation, many insurgents escaped the camp
by boat.
"The area is full of marshes and lakes," Interior Ministry spokesman
Sabah Kadhim said. "They used to use boats to get to the camp. It's
difficult to get there and to discover the location."
Officials said the joint Iraqi-U.S. force came under heavy insurgency
fire at the start of the operation. The unit of about 250 Iraqi Interior
Ministry commandos, selected to be the lead force, called for U.S.
helicopter fire support in a battle that lasted about two hours.
The insurgency camp trained mostly foreign Arab nationals, officials
said. They said most of the insurgents killed were Algerians, Moroccans,
Saudis, Sudanese and Syrians who appeared to have been recruited in Lebanon
and Syria.
"The terrorists had planned on attacking Samara by using a large number
of VBIEDs [vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices] that were found at
the facility," a government statement said.
Iraqi officials said 12 of their troops were killed. The United States
did not report any casualties.
U.S. officials said the operation reflected the increased capability of
Iraqi forces. They said the Interior Ministry commandos maintained their
positions under withering insurgency RPG and light arms fire and quickly
captured the training camp.