'Operation Iron Hammer' enters second day

[Vance]

Baghdad, Iraq (CNN) -- A long series of explosions shook Baghdad Thursday night as U.S. forces targeted Iraqi insurgents for a second day of attacks dubbed Operation Iron Hammer.

Coalition officials said the 1st Armored Division was conducting attacks on pro-Saddam Hussein insurgents in the Iraqi capital.

There were no details on what was targeted.

The operation began Wednesday, just hours after anti-coalition elements attacked the Italian military police headquarters in Nasiriya and killed 18 Italians and at least eight Iraqis.

In the western part of Baghdad, troops attacked guerrillas who had launched mortars at U.S. troops. They tried to escape in a van when Apache attack helicopters struck, killing two people inside, according to military officials. Three others were wounded and five were detained.

An AC-130 Spectre gunship was called in to destroy a warehouse in southern Baghdad used by Iraqi insurgents to meet and plan attacks against U.S. forces around the Iraqi capital, the officials said. There were no known casualties in the incident.

Pentagon officials Thursday said the U.S is holding about 20 people in Iraq as suspected enemy combatants after they were captured in a series of U.S. raids the past two days around the towns of Mosul and Tal Afar.

Four of the suspects are linked with the deaths of two U.S. soldiers who had been working with the mayor of Mosul.

Guerrillas also kept up the pressure Thursday, attacking a U.S. vehicle in Fallujah with an improvised explosive device, causing three casualties, a witness told CNN.

The Army said a U.S. soldier died Wednesday from injuries sustained in a roadside bomb attack earlier in the day in Baghdad.

Gen. John Abizaid, the head off the U.S. Central Command on Thursday blamed the attack on a small group that "does not exceed 5,000," and he dismissed suggestions that Saddam Hussein is spearheading it, saying the most dangerous enemy is the small but active network of Baathist cells.

"It's being done by people who realize they have a lot to lose if Iraq emerges as a moderate and stable nation," Abizaid said, speaking to reporters in a closed-circuit feed from Central Command headquarters in Tampa.

"Now, people will say, 'Well, that's a very small number,' but when you understand that they're organized in cellular structure, that they have a brutal and determined cadre, that they know how to operate covertly, they have access to a lot of money and a lot of ammunition, you'll understand how dangerous they are," Abizaid said.

He said it would be wrong to give Saddam credit for organizing the insurgency, calling him "one of the most incompetent leaders" in world history.

However, Abizaid said, "Saddam Hussein is alive and moving around Iraq."

With the latest death, 401 U.S. troops have been killed in the Iraq war, 262 after President Bush declared an end to major combat on May 1.

There is no reliable source for Iraqi civilian or combatant casualty figures, either during the period of major combat or after May 1.

The Associated Press reported an estimated 3,240 civilian Iraqi deaths between March 20 and April 20, but the AP said that the figure was based on records of only half of Iraq's hospitals, and the actual number was thought to be significantly higher.
Sweet, Operation Iron Hammer sounds hella cool.

Plus Bush says he wants the Iraqis to take more responsibilty in running their country.

[Argyll]

Gen. John Abizaid, the head off the U.S. Central Command on Thursday blamed the attack on a small group that "does not exceed 5,000," and he dismissed suggestions that Saddam Hussein is spearheading it, saying the most dangerous enemy is the small but active network of Baathist cells.

"It's being done by people who realize they have a lot to lose if Iraq emerges as a moderate and stable nation," Abizaid said, speaking to reporters in a closed-circuit feed from Central Command headquarters in Tampa.

"Now, people will say, 'Well, that's a very small number,' but when you understand that they're organized in cellular structure, that they have a brutal and determined cadre, that they know how to operate covertly, they have access to a lot of money and a lot of ammunition, you'll understand how dangerous they are," Abizaid said.



And pray tell me how they came up with that figure?
Not more than 5000, jesus H that's 4 battalions worth,each broken up into 3-4 man teams,that's some going to try and "eradicate "them,this is going to get very very bloody indeed!

[pinkeye]

too bad it's not operation m.c. hammer... you can't touch this! :lol:

[duck]

The NYT has a story on first results:

Air Raid Sends Iraqis Message, but What Is It?
By DEXTER FILKINS

Published: November 14, 2003


AGHDAD, Iraq, Nov. 13 — After the start of a well-publicized offensive against Iraqi insurgents, American commanders said Thursday that they were intent on sending the rebels "a message."

But here at the site of one of the operation's primary targets, local Iraqis said they were uncertain what that message was supposed to be

On the southern edge of the capital, a large building that American commanders said was a "meeting, planning, storage and rendezvous point" for the insurgents still stood, despite the military's claim that it had been destroyed in an airstrike the night before.

American soldiers came to the neighborhood several hours before the attack, local residents said, warning of the impending strike and making sure that everyone in the area was evacuated. Then an American AC-130 gunship strafed the building, knocking holes in the walls and wrecking much of the textile machinery arrayed inside.

After the strike, the Americans came back but detained no suspects, not even the owner of the building, and found no weapons.

The owner, Waad Dakhil Bolane, who said the Americans had warned his guards of the impending air raid, shook his head in befuddlement.

"Does this look like a military base to you?" he asked, standing inside his factory, which was still filled with textile machinery. "The Americans came here, told the guards to leave and then attacked. I don't understand."

American commanders, who have been threatening for days to crack down on the Iraqi insurgents, said later that they were certain that the building had been used to fire mortars at American soldiers. One local Iraqi man seemed to confirm this. Told by a visitor that he intended to visit the factory, the man, Dervish Mohammad, waved his hand in warning. "Look out," he said, "there are bad people in there."

But the commanders conceded that their primary aim had been to impress the guerrillas as much as to kill them.

"We were sending a message," an allied official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "The message is, `We're coming.' "

In recent weeks military commanders have seemed to be judiciously choosing targets that provide relatively benign opportunities to remind Iraqis of the firepower they have at their disposal.

Last week, after the downing of American helicopters in Falluja and Tikrit, American F-16 fighter jets bombed rudimentary buildings that were suspected of harboring insurgents and matériel. Such planes had been used rarely, if at all, since May 1, when President Bush declared an end to major combat operations in Iraq.

Similarly, the AC-130 gunship, which was used Wednesday night, seemed to bring far more firepower than was needed to shoot up the textile factory. Even after the attack, the building still stood — readily available, it seemed, to harbor the same enemy meetings and planning sessions that were suspected before.

For all the technologically advanced weaponry employed in recent days, it is not clear what effect it has had on tamping down the insurgency. Wednesday, the day the American offensive began, turned out to be one of the most intense yet for American soldiers, who were attacked 46 times by Iraqi guerrillas.

In the last seven days, an American military official said Thursday, the average number of attacks per day against American forces has risen to 37, a step up from previous weeks.

American officials said they had killed or captured a number of Iraqi insurgents during the current offensive and had foiled a number of attacks. In the coming days, they said, the offensive would kick into a higher gear.

Indeed, by late Thursday, the sound of gun and artillery fire, evidently of American origin, began echoing through the Baghdad streets.

Late Thursday evening, American commanders said they had attacked one building and two suspected mortar sites.

The offensive, which was even given a fierce name, Operation Iron Hammer, was announced Wednesday in Washington shortly after it began. It seemed intended to lift the morale of American soldiers here, who have been the target of frequent hit-and-run attacks, which are difficult to repel.

The American officials said they had scored some notable successes on their first night. One came when they spotted a group of Iraqis firing mortars against American targets.

[duck]

Air Raid Sends Iraqis Message, but What Is It?

Published: November 14, 2003


(Page 2 of 2)



An Apache attack helicopter strafed the van that carried the group, killing two inside and severely wounding three. Five others were captured. American officials say they found an 82-millimeter mortar tube, three rifles and three cases of ammunition.

American officials said soldiers had also fired on a group of Iraqis who had been preparing to fire mortars at the headquarters of the American administration.

More such attacks, they said, are on the way.

"What you are seeing is offensive operations to go after our enemies in their lairs," an American official said Thursday in Baghdad. "We expect that these kinds of operations will continue for as long as they are necessary."

Remarks by military officials on Thursday echoed those made earlier this week by Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, who vowed to wage a more aggressive campaign against the insurgents and terrorists. General Sanchez and other American officials said they expected the number of attacks on American forces to rise in the near future as the American stepped up their operations.

By that calculus the American campaign may be a bloody one: in Tampa on Thursday, Gen. John Abizaid, head of the United States Central Command, estimated that the insurgents in Iraq numbered about 5,000.

General Abizaid and other have said the key to winning the war against the insurgents is having access to good information on their whereabouts. American commanders have acknowledged that they have been lacking in that area. But they insist that in regard to the textile factory, they were onto something.

So, apparently, did Mr. Muhammad, who warned of the "bad people" in the textile factory. Mr. Muhammad, moreover, did not count himself a strong friend of the Americans. He was in the spring, he said, just after the Americans had thrown out the government of Saddam Hussein. But since then, he said, too many things have gone wrong.

"In the beginning we were all happy," Mr. Muhammad said. "But security is so bad now, we have all lost hope."

[Guttorm]

I wonder, who gets paid for coming up with all these great names for the operations?

"Desert Storm"
"Iron Hammer"
"Active Endeavour"

He's doing a helluva job... :lol:

[Erik]

I wonder, who gets paid for coming up with all these great names for the operations?

"Desert Storm"
"Iron Hammer"
"Active Endeavour"

He's doing a helluva job... :lol:
And the best eva "Operation Iraqi Freedom" rofl

Great ways to impress and manipulate the public.

[Seoulstriker]

I wonder, who gets paid for coming up with all these great names for the operations?

"Desert Storm"
"Iron Hammer"
"Active Endeavour"

He's doing a helluva job... :lol:
And the best eva "Operation Iraqi Freedom" rofl

Great ways to impress and manipulate the public.

Finland also had an operation in Iraq. it was called "Operation Let's Do Nothing and Let Saddam kill hunreds of thousands of more people and create weapons of mass destruction that can be used to kill millions of people."

:roll:

[pinkeye]

I wonder, who gets paid for coming up with all these great names for the operations?

"Desert Storm"
"Iron Hammer"
"Active Endeavour"

He's doing a helluva job... :lol:
And the best eva "Operation Iraqi Freedom" rofl

Great ways to impress and manipulate the public.

Finland also had an operation in Iraq. it was called "Operation Let's Do Nothing and Let Saddam kill hunreds of thousands of more people and create weapons of mass destruction that can be used to kill millions of people."

:roll:

wasn't that the name of the american mission during the 1980s? let's add the rest of the international community to that list.

[martinexsquaddie]

the british plan in the 1980s was to sell as much Kit as possible rofl
why'd you think we had to come up with a new pattern of dessie cam
thats aslo wher all the 66 pattern para smocks ended up :)

[The Walrus]

The only 'message' the Americans are sending to the insurgents is that they are doing exactly what they want the Americans to do, more heavy handed operations to alienate the local population and boost recruits to the resistance, leading to more operations, more recruits and so on until this turns to Vietnam.
I think the Americans should concentrate much more on intelligence and make operations more low key rather than looking for psychological impact.

[Dalleer]

Finland also had an operation in Iraq. it was called "Operation Let's Do Nothing and Let Saddam kill hunreds of thousands of more people and create weapons of mass destruction that can be used to kill millions of people."

I seriously doubt that. What's your point?

That we should have sent soldiers with the US into Iraq and see KIA notifications in the morning news? no way, my good man.

The US along with their coalition got themselves into this fight, so let them handle it. Finland has nothing to do with this matter, and if this operation goes belly up, we have much more to lose of it than the US.

We have much experience on what happens when our ally gets weak or just abandons you. Not that I would be saying those things about the US, but still...

Too great of a risk. Maybe if this whole damn mess would go through the UN or would have the backing of the majority in NATO our country might consider sending in the peacekeeping forces.


And besides, the name goes "Finnish defence forces". We are not here to attack other countries you know.

[Vance]

Yeah, you're also not her to HELP other countries, either.

[NcDeuce]

That we should have sent soldiers with the US into Iraq and see KIA notifications in the morning news? no way, my good man.

So you don't believe in losing men in combat???

It is a possibility in every deployment and training exercise, whether in combat or training.

[Dalleer]

So you don't believe in losing men in combat???

It is a possibility in every deployment and training exercise, whether in combat or training.

Of course it is a possibility. But, Finland is a small country that has no interests there and the whole concept of sending troops from Finland to Iraq into combat operations would be against our constitution, peacekeeping missions put aside of course.

I do believe in helping other countries, but not with Finland's military resources.

Some smaller countries have decided to go along with the US, and that is their decision, Finland therefore has decided not to go into these sorts of operations especially without UN backing.

I guess our country depends on the UN and its rules that much.


And, I do find the post proclaiming Finland as "stupid bastards who did nothing against Saddam" quite irrelevant especially when Finland would have no resources to fight Saddam without risking alot, sure we could send in troops with the basis that "You might be shot there, and the operation has no UN backing" but I doubt that very many would be willing to approve such a op in our country.