Iraq to Launch Huge Operation in Baghdad
40,000 Troops to Take Part; Officials Say Zarqawi Wounding Would Weaken Insurgency
Marine Maj. Steven Lawson, right, searches a house in Haditha thought to be owned by Abu Musab Zarqawi, the insurgent chief reported to be wounded.
(By Jacob Silberberg -- Associated Press)
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Friday, May 27, 2005
BAGHDAD, May 27 -- The government said Thursday it was close to launching the largest Iraqi security operation in Baghdad to date, deploying 40,000 troops and seeking to trap insurgents with a tight cordon around the capital "like a bangle around the wrist."
The announcement about the operation in Baghdad came as several Iraqi officials and a Western diplomat said the insurgency would be significantly weakened if reports that Jordanian insurgent leader Abu Musab Zarqawi was severely wounded proved true.
Zarqawi is "a personal, active leader" whose group, al Qaeda in Iraq, is the only part of an otherwise fragmented insurgency that shows "a kind of central nervous system," the Western diplomat said.
"If this guy dies, it would have a very significant effect," said the diplomat, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity. He added that reports of Zarqawi's worsening condition seemed credible but were not yet verified.
Meanwhile, U.S. officials here and in Washington continued to urge the Iraqi government to demonstrate its resolve against the wave of violence that has killed more than 600 people in the past month. Attacks continued Thursday as a pair of explosions in Baghdad killed at least seven people and as a college administrator and an Industry Ministry official were assassinated.
The security initiative, dubbed Operation Lightning, could begin as early as Sunday. Officials said it would be the first in a series of sweeps throughout the country. Another one, to be held a week later, will target the insurgent stronghold along Iraq's border with Syria.
"Anyone who tries to shed the blood of Iraqis, we will take them down," said Defense Minister Sadoun Dulaimi, who announced the operation at a joint news conference with Interior Minister Bayan Jabr. They said planning had been underway for 15 days and was supervised by Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari.
"The goal is to take an assault position rather than a defensive position" and to "uproot terrorists and terror cells inside the Baghdad area," Dulaimi said.
Police and soldiers will divide the city into 22 sectors, setting up 675 checkpoints at Baghdad's main intersections and gathering intelligence to be used in raids, Dulaimi said. When targets are identified, commando and special forces units will be prepared to strike on short notice, he added.
The Western diplomat said soldiers from the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division would participate.
A principal focus of the operation, officials said, would be finding and dismantling workshops where car bombs are being assembled. Baghdad has had more car bombings this month than in all of 2004.
Jabr, whose police officers have been accused by Sunni Muslim leaders of attacking clerics, said no mosques or other places of worship would be raided during the operation except on his orders. He called on Muslim imams leading Friday prayers to ask the public to remain calm and to cooperate.
