Two senior al-Qaida operatives killed in Iraq

From the Good News desk:

By PATRICK QUINN, March 02, 2008 (AP)
BAGHDAD — A U.S. military helicopter fired a guided missile to kill a wanted Saudi Arabian al-Qaida in Iraq leader who was believed responsible for the bombing deaths of five American soldiers, a spokesman said Monday.

U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Gregory Smith said Jar Allah, also known as Abu Yasir al-Saudi, and another Saudi known only as Hamdan, were both killed Wednesday in Mosul. Al-Saudi headed up the al-Qaida network in southeast Mosul, an insurgent hotbed where U.S forces wage daily battles against the group.
-Being an al Qaida operative in Iraq is a very hazardous position.

According to the military, al-Saudi conducted numerous attacks against Iraqi and U.S. forces, including a Jan. 28 bombing that killed the five U.S. soldiers.

In that attack, insurgents blasted a U.S. patrol with a roadside bomb and showered survivors with gunfire from a mosque. The soldiers died in the explosion _ the deadliest on American forces since six soldiers perished Jan. 9 in a booby-trapped house north of Baghdad.
-Imagine the outrage by the Christian community if one Christian were seen to shoot a single round from a church. My question is where is the Muslim reaction? Why no outrage, why are their weapons in a Mosque? Why didn’t the US bomb it flat?

Intelligence gathered in the area led the U.S. military to al-Saudi, who was in a car with Hamdan. A precision helicopter strike killed both and destroyed their vehicle. U.S. forces then confirmed the men’s identities.

Al-Saudi is said to have been a close associate of al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Ayyub al-Masri and to have arrived in Mosul with a group of foreign fighters in August 2007 after spending time fighting in Afghanistan.

“Mosul is a critical crossroads for al-Qaida in Iraq. It is their strategic center of gravity. One-half to two-thirds of attacks in Iraq today are in and around Mosul,” Smith said.

Smith said the deaths brought to 142 the number of al-Qaida insurgents killed or captured since the beginning of the year.
-All are in hell beating mohammed for inventing Islam.

Associated Press writer Bradley Brooks contributed to this story from Baghdad.

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