Troops Nab 5 Suspected Iranian-Backed Militants in Baghdad

Dispatches from the Front:

WASHINGTON, July 18, 2008 -- Coalition forces detained five suspected militants and seized weapons caches in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad over the past three days, military official said.

Forces captured five suspected Iranian-backed “special groups” members during operations today in the Adhamiyah section of the capital.

Troops targeted the location of a suspected special groups financier responsible for disbursing funds for propaganda-related activities, military officials said. Coalition forces captured three suspects as they approached the target site and two additional suspects at a separate location nearby.

During operations yesterday, combined troops discovered nearly a dozen weapons caches across Baghdad. The stockpiles contained munitions and mortar rounds, grenades, homemade explosives, mines, bomb-making materials, assault rifles and ammunition, and other military equipment.

In southern Baghdad July 16, an Iraqi citizen guided soldiers from 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, to three rocket-propelled grenades in the Rashid district of the Iraqi capital, a raid that occurred in conjunction with Operation Nor'easter. An explosives ordnance disposal unit hauled the munitions to a coalition forces base for destruction, military officials said.

“The 1st Brigade soldiers interact daily with the Iraqi citizens of the Rashid district,” said Army Maj. Dave Olson, a spokesman for 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, in Multinational Division Baghdad. "As part of Operation Nor'easter, we continue to provide a safe environment for the citizens of Iraq."

(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq and Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)

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