California Conservative

Another operation that has been a major success is “Operation Skinner” in Ramadi, Iraq. The U.S. Army and the Iraqi Army have been working together to kill and capture insurgents and terrorists, and also seize weapons caches and even a bomb making factory.

So some say that we are not making any progress? Let’s look at Ramadi one year ago; the New York Times reports:

Nov 20. 2004
On Saturday, Marines set up roadblocks around Ramadi and broadcast messages calling on the residents to turn over any “terrorists,” Reuters reported. The Marines are engaged in a holding action in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar. They have a presence at the government center and several outposts downtown, but they do not have real control of the city - insurgents roam freely and regularly murder residents deemed to be collaborating with the Americans or Iraqi government.

One year ago. Chaos, out of control. Insurgents running wild in the heart of the city. By sharp contrast, let’s look at this week as we prepare for the elections…

U.S. troops find arms, bomb factory during Ramadi raids

Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Monday, December 12, 2005

U.S. and Iraqi forces wrapped up their latest foray in Ramadi this weekend, this time sending troops into the center of the town, U.S. officials said Sunday.

The operation, dubbed Gashshaar in Arabic and Skinner in English, included U.S. Marines, soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, and Iraqi army troops. Unlike the previous operations in and around Ramadi in recent weeks, the military did not release the number of troops involved.

Operation Skinner began Dec. 7 and is the seventh in a series of maneuvers designed to “set conditions in the city for successful elections Dec. 15,” the Marines said in a news release.

“The operation netted four weapons caches and several detainees, and also two command-initiated rocket systems designed to ambush passing convoys in central Ramadi.”

U.S. officials also said the troops had discovered a “bomb-making factory” in the main shopping district. That discovery yielded artillery and mortar rounds, timers and remote detonators, a Marine official said.

Sunday’s reports were the first pieces of information released about the operation. “Details concerning Operation Skinner were not provided earlier due to operational security,” the Marine release said.

Unlike the previous operations, which largely targeted areas on the fringes of the city, Skinner was aimed at the downtown area, which has long been an insurgent stronghold.

Points?
1) Insurgents no longer control downtown
2) Bomb making and rocket capabilities were seized
3) The area is secure and ready for the elections
4) The Iraqi Army helped to do it.

Even though my web site is dedicated to the U.S. military, I have made a big deal out of the Iraqi Army. To quote from the movie Remember the Titans, “Attitude reflects leadership.” We all know that the U.S. military can go in and kick butt. But can they train the Iraqi Army to conduct operations and hold the zones secured after the U.S. leaves? The answer is yes.

Operation Skinner was a major success. You would never know it by reading the mainstream agenda media. I found it, but only buried in a CNN “special report” called Deadline passes; no word on hostages. No fair! Here’s the excerpt:

Ramadi operations complete
The latest in a series of counter-insurgency operations in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar province, has ended, the U.S. military said.

Operation Skinner, which began Wednesday in central Ramadi, was sparked by the migration of insurgents to the city, the military said. It was the seventh such action in the town since November 16.

The operation uncovered four weapons caches and “two command-initiated rocket systems designed to ambush passing convoys,” the military said in a statement.

“Iraqi and U.S. forces also disrupted terrorist plans when they discovered an insurgent bomb-making factory in the center of the Ramadi shopping district. Artillery and mortar rounds, timers and remote detonators were found in the bomb-making facility,” it said.
Also in Ramadi, local citizens on Friday delivered a top al Qaeda in Iraq operative, whom they had captured, the U.S. military said. It cited the capture as evidence that “the local citizens tire of the insurgents’ presence within their community.”

Amir Khalaf Fanus, aka the “Butcher,” was wanted in connection with several killings and kidnappings and was No. 3 on the most-wanted list of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team that patrols the area west of Baghdad.

It was not immediately known if Fanus might have any information on the whereabouts of al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the most-wanted man in Iraq, who has a $25 million reward on his head.

His group has carried out numerous bomb attacks on local Iraqis, U.S. forces and Iraqi forces. The group also has perpetrated multiple kidnappings that have resulted in the beheadings of the victims.

We also note from the alphabet news that the local citizens delivered up “the Butcher.” I guess the one third that supports us was able to overpower the two thirds that want us out. (sarcasm intentional)

In reality, the elections on the 15 are a historic moment, and a radical victory for the U.S. over terrorism, Bush over the liberal media, Senators, and anti-war crowd, and Democracy over Fascism.

Cross-posted at Rightfielder

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 13th, 2005 at 8:29 am and is filed under Author: RightFielder, Middle East, Military, Patriotism, Terrorism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.