al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia

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Iraq Fighters Ditch US, Rejoin al-Qaeda

Sunnis are quitting 'Awakening Councils' for al-Qaeda

(Newser) - A wave of Sunni fighters whose alliance with the United States has been critical in turning the insurgent tide in Iraq have rejoined al-Qaeda, or are acting as double agents, finds the New York Times . Though the number of defections is unclear, several hundred members of the Awakening Councils have...

Al-Qaeda Steals Blood From Iraq Hospitals

Terror group uses fluid to treat its own wounded soldiers

(Newser) - As if working in an Iraqi hospital isn't challenge enough: The New York Times reports that Al-Qaeda groups routinely steal blood at gunpoint to treat their own wounded soldiers, often while Iraqi security forces stand by and watch. It's been going on for years, ever since Iraqi police began making...

Iraq Busts Baby Suicide Bombers

Security forces swoop on cell of al-Qaeda-groomed kids

(Newser) - Iraqi security forces say they have smashed a cell of kids recruited to become al-Qaeda suicide bombers, the Times of London reports. Military officials have arrested four children under the age of 14 they believe were preparing to carry out attacks in the northern city of Kirkuk and had been...

Smaller, Fiercer Insurgency Has Iraq Worried

(Newser) - As the US military prepares to withdraw from Iraq's cities, security officials in both countries have observed that a smaller but more lethal insurgency seems to be gaining ground. Several recent bombings, believed to be orchestrated by al-Qaeda in Iraq, have killed 123 people in Baghdad and elsewhere, while members...

Iraq Cracks Down on US-Allied Sunni Fighters

US commanders fear reversal of hard-fought peace

(Newser) - Iraq's Shiite-dominated government has begun a crackdown on groups of US-backed Sunni fighters, the New York Times reports. The government fears the fighters, part of what is called the Awakening movement, could be waiting to turn their guns on Shiites. In several parts of the country senior members have been...

Desperation Drives Iraq's Female Bombers

Death of insurgents leaves female relatives feeling suicide is their only option

(Newser) - Female suicide bombings are on the rise in Iraq's restive Diyala province, the New York Times reports, and success in combating al-Qaeda may be the cause. Many local insurgents have been killed or detained, leaving their surviving female relatives with little hope for the future. They often come under great...

Baghdad Collars 1,000 in al-Qaeda Offensive

Mosul, Nineveh center of crackdown

(Newser) - Iraqi forces have detained over 1,000 suspected militants in a massive push to drive al-Qaeda out of northern Iraq, Reuters reports. The crackdown centers on Mosul, al-Qaeda’s last major urban foothold. “This operation will last until we finish off all the terrorist remnants and outlaws,” said...

Bombs Kill Dozens in Iraq
 Bombs Kill Dozens in Iraq 

Bombs Kill Dozens in Iraq

35 dead in double wedding blast; US soldier among dead in Baghdad attack

(Newser) - As US forces engaged in heavy fighting in the Mahdi Army's Sadr City today, bombings in Baghdad and Diyala province took the lives of as many as 45 Iraqis and one US soldier, the AP reports. The Diyala bombing, in Balad Ruz, was carried out by two suicide bombers—one...

Baghdad Blast Kills 5 US Troops
Baghdad Blast Kills 5 US Troops

Baghdad Blast Kills 5 US Troops

Leader of Sunni Awakening killed in separate suicide attack

(Newser) - Five American troops are dead after a suicide bomber struck today in the Mansour district of Baghdad, the BBC reports. The soldiers were patrolling a busy shopping center when a young man wearing an explosive vest engaged them in conversation shortly before detonating, said a military spokesman. Three other service...

Bungled Europe Bombings Linked to Iraq Al-Qaeda

First attack by Iraqi group outside Mideast

(Newser) - Terrorist plotters behind bungled bombings in London and Glasgow six months ago have been linked to an al-Qaeda group in Iraq. The bombings are the first attacks attempted by the group Al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia outside the Mideast, reports the New York Times. The plotters drove a vehicle packed with gas...

Saudis, Libyans Fighting in Iraq
Saudis, Libyans Fighting in Iraq

Saudis, Libyans Fighting in Iraq

Captured intelligence shows most foreign insurgents are Saudis or Libyans

(Newser) - Most of the foreign insurgents fighting American troops in Iraq come from two so-called US allies in the war on terrorism—Saudi Arabia and Libya. Evidence was discovered in a September raid on a desert terrorist base that produced a mother lode of intelligence on the identities and hometowns of...

Qaeda Busted in Baghdad: Gen.
Qaeda Busted in Baghdad: Gen.

Qaeda Busted in Baghdad: Gen.

Baghdad Commander says al Qaeda wing ousted from the city

(Newser) - The Iraqi-based terror network Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia has been ousted by US troops from every neighborhood in Baghdad where it once operated, according to Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, commander of US forces in the city. Fil also tells the New York Times that violence is down significantly.

Iraqis Dispute Identity of 25 Killed by US

Military says they fired first; civilians say militia defended town from al-Qaeda

(Newser) - American troops killed 25 Iraqis north of Baghdad today, the New York Times reports, but accounts differ over why the Iraqis were armed. The US military said soldiers were fired upon by "criminals " involved in transporting arms from Iran; civilians in the mainly Shiite district of Khalis said...

Sunnis Launch Ramadan Murder Drive
Sunnis Launch Ramadan Murder Drive

Sunnis Launch Ramadan Murder Drive

Insurgents target police, Interior Ministry officials, tribal leaders for assassination

(Newser) - Sunni insurgents have launched an assassination campaign aimed at  Iraqi police and officials of the Interior Ministry to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, reports the New York Times. Eight police officers, including a police chief, have been killed and 30 injured. A provincial governor  survived a suicide bombing...

Bush Contorts Qaeda Threat, Critics Charge

Iraqi insurgents' links to Bin Laden group said to be consistently misstated

(Newser) - With George Bush using the words "al Qaeda" more than 30 times in his speech on Iraq yesterday, critics charge that he's persistently distorting links between the global Al Qaeda organization and the Iraqi insurgency. The Al Qaeda faction fighting in Iraq is largely an independent Iraqi phenomenon, the...

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