troung

Iraq tribe says it kills dozens of Qaeda fighters

Sun Nov 26, 3:42 AM ET

RAMADI, Iraq (Reuters) - The head of a tribal council in Iraq's western province of Anbar said on Sunday that tribesmen had killed 55 al Qaeda fighters in a battle on Saturday, but the U.S. military could not confirm the figures.

The death toll, if confirmed, would mark an unusually fierce clash with insurgents in a province where U.S. forces regularly battle foreign fighters they say are linked to al Qaeda and other Sunni insurgents.

The U.S. military said in a statement it launched air strikes and fired artillery to help a tribe in the town of Sofia after an attack by al Qaeda.

"Al Qaeda burned homes and killed members of the tribe using small arms fire and mortars," the military said in a statement. It gave no casualty figures.

Sattar al-Buzayi, head of the Anbar Salvation Council, an umbrella group of tribes in Anbar, a vast Sunni province in the west of Iraq, said tribal fighters had raided an al Qaeda stronghold and killed 55 militants and arrested 25. He said nine tribal fighters were killed in the clash.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061126/...raq_qaeda_dc_1

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To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

troung

Al Qaeda attacks Al Anbar tribe
Sunday, 26 November 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20061126-01
Nov. 26, 2006

Al Qaeda attacks Al Anbar tribe
Multi-National Corps – West PAO

AR RAMADI, Iraq – Al Qaeda terrorists attacked the Abu Soda tribe in Sofia Nov. 25. In response, Coalition Forces provided support to the Abu Soda’s fight against Al Qaeda.

“The American’s have come to the aide of the Abu Soda tribe. They have understood the dire situation [that the Abu Soda are currently battling the Al Qaeda], because [the Americans] see it as a fight against a common enemy,” said Sheikh Ahmed, Sheikh of Abu Resha.

After establishing positive identification, Coalition Forces conducted air strikes and fired artillery at Al Qaeda forces attacking the Abu Soda Tribe.

Al Qaeda forces attacked through a tribal area check point and engaged the Abu Soda in Sofia. Al Qaeda burned homes, and killed members of the tribe using small arms fire and mortars.

There were no reports of Coalition or Iraqi Security Forces casualties during this fight. Both Al Qaeda and the Abu Soda suffered casualties but the exact numbers are unknown at this time.

According to Sheikh Ahmed, “The Abu Soda tribe that is being led by Sheik Jassim and supported by Sheikh Abbas from the Abu Mahal have given their men to the Ministry of the Interior to serve as Iraqi Police. Al Qaeda has decided to attack the
tribes due to their support. The terrorists have gone to a neighboring tribe and have brought fighters to attack the Abu Soda.”

The Abu Soda and Abu Mahal are both members of the Sahawat Al Anbar (Awakening Council) started by Sheikh Sittar of the Abu Resha tribe.

-{SpoonmaN}-

Can you blame them? The MNF might be having trouble winning the PR war in Iraq, but it looks a lot like Al-Quaeda is outright losing. Supposedly the mainstream of Al-Q is trying to distance itself from the Jihadists in Iraq because their actions are starting to hurt the image they want to cultivate of being an organisation that stands up for Muslims, something that doesnt really come through with all the bombings and murders of Muslim civilians.

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