THE TENSION: OIF Summary; Dec. 5, 2008: Troops in Iraq Kill Terrorist, Nab Suspects

Dispatches from the Front:

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2008 -- Operations across Iraq over the past two days left one terrorist dead, brought in five wanted men and resulted in the detention of 18 additional suspects, military officials reported.

In Bazzunah, northwest of Mosul, coalition forces approached a house today where a suspected suicide bomber was believed to be. When they called for the occupants to surrender, a man came out of an adjacent building and appeared to have what could have been a suicide belt under his clothing, officials said. He failed to comply with the assault force's multiple instructions to surrender, so the assault force killed him.

It was later determined that the dead terrorist was a wanted man believed to facilitate the movement of foreign suicide bombers into Iraq. Three men were detained during the operation without incident.

In Mosul today, coalition forces detained a suspect in an operation targeting a suicide-bomb cell member, and another in an operation targeting a wanted man believed to be an al-Qaida in Iraq courier and possible administrative operative.

In Baghdad today, forces captured a wanted man suspected of attacks against coalition forces, along with a suspected associate.

Three operations late yesterday and early today in Beiji, south of Mosul, further degraded al-Qaida in Iraq leadership, officials said.

During the first operation, forces detained one suspect. The ground force was then led to a second location, where they detained two additional suspects.

In the second operation, forces captured a suspected terrorist believed to be an al-Qaida in Iraq weapons facilitator. Reports suggest the wanted man conspires directly with the terrorist group’s local leaders and was stockpiling weapons intended to be used against coalition forces during the upcoming provincial elections, officials said. He surrendered himself without incident.

Early today, a third operation in Beiji resulted in the capture of a suspected terrorist allegedly associated with building roadside bombs and car bombs. The wanted man also is believed to have connections to regional al-Qaida in Iraq leaders. A suspected associate also was detained.

In northern Iraq, coalition forces in Kirkuk worked with Iraqi forces during an operation targeting an alleged al-Qaida in Iraq courier yesterday. Four additional suspects were detained for further questioning.

Yesterday in central Iraq, coalition forces conducted two coordinated operations in Tikrit and captured a wanted man believed to have connections to al-Qaida in Iraq leadership and detained three additional suspects.

A suspected terrorist believed to have connections to al-Qaida in Iraq leaders in Iraq’s Anbar province was captured by coalition forces in Mussayib. A suspected associate was detained.

In Dec. 3 operations:

Iraqi National Police and Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers detained a suspected member of an Iranian-backed criminal group in the Aamel community of southern Baghdad's Rashid district. The man is suspected of murder and distributing propaganda.

In a clearance operation in the Aamel community, Iraqi National Police confiscated a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, six AK-47 assault rifles, an RPK machine gun, a rifle scope, four PKC ammunition cans and small-arms ammunition.

A resident’s tip led to a cache hidden in a vacant house in Kadhamiyah that included 75 60 mm mortars, 21 81 mm mortars, six 130 mm artillery rounds, four 107 mm rockets, 130 grenades and 2,000 rounds of ammunition. Earlier, soldiers found a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, nine RPGs and a box of ammunition while conducting searches in Hussaniyah.

Also south of Baghdad, U.S. soldiers recovered a stockpile of weapons and munitions collected by Iraqi soldiers during a two-week period. The munitions included 26 57 mm projectiles, 22 high-explosive anti-tank grenades, 37 RPG rounds, seven 60 mm mortars, an RPG, a 20-pound bag of stick propellant, 20 projectile fuses, 32 23 mm cartridges, six 82 mm mortars, three rifle grenades, an 82 mm projectile, a 5-pound bag of bulk explosive, a 57 mm rocket and two 60 mm mortars.

Soldiers in southern Baghdad also found a cache that included a machine gun, nine full AK-47 magazines, two full pistol magazines and fake identification cards.