Task Force 626, a streamlined version of Task Force 121 that captured Saddam Hussein and killed his sons, believes they are on the trail of Zarqawi. Marine Gen. Sattler divulged several weeks ago that Zarqawi was close to capture several times by the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force stations in the restive al-Anbar province, and ABC News follows up with a report that Zarqawi was nearly detained in Ramadi (hat tip to Chester):
On Feb. 20, the alleged terror mastermind was heading to a secret meeting in Ramadi, just west of Fallujah, where he used to base his operations, the official said.
Task Force 626 – the covert American military unit charged with finding Zarqawi – had troops in place to grab the fugitive, and mobile vehicle checkpoints had been established around the city’s perimeter. Another U.S. official said predator drones were also in flight, tracking movements in and around the city.
A source who had been inside the Zarqawi network alerted the task force to the meeting. Officials deem the source “extremely credible.”
The use of Task Force 626 should come as no surprise, as Joint Task Forces combining Special Operations Forces (Delta Teams, SEAL Teams), CIA (intelligence, paramilitary, UAV drone operators), NSA (signals intelligence), Air Force (further UAV support, close air support) and likely select British, Australian and Iraqi intelligence elements are ideally suited to gather intelligence and execute a grab.
The fact that there is someone inside the Zarqawi network is what is startling. Al Qaeda in Iraq appears to have been penetrated, no small feat as al Qaeda is traditionally a very closed and secretive organization, admitting only the most ideologically pure of the Islamists within their ranks.
The agent is likely of Arab descent, perhaps an Iraqi, as genuine cover would be needed to break into al Qaeda’s inner circle. This agent may be responsible for several of the arrests of high-ranking Zarqawi lieutenants over the past several months. While Zarqawi escaped, the mission was not a complete failure, as money, a computer and two close assistants were captured in the raid:
Finding the computer, said the official, “was a seminal event.” It had “a very big hard drive,” the official said, and recent pictures of Zarqawi. The official said Zarqawi’s driver and a bodyguard were taken into custody.
The computer will likely have a huge amount of data on al Qaedas network, based on past findings of siezed hardware. Zarqawi’s driver and a bodyguard are also important catches, as their jobs descriptions constantly put them at Zarqawi’s side. These are men that would know the most intimate details of his professional life: his habits, routines, and methods of operation as well as knowledge about the group’s leaders, safe houses, finances and areas of operation.
The recent report of al Qaeda hiring Shiites to conduct terror attacks as well as the agent highlights a potentially interesting weakness in the Iraqi theater. The need to provide the appearance of strength and effectiveness in Iraq may be causing al Qaeda to “lower their standards” by admitting less than ideal candidates into the organization.
The Coalition can exploit this two ways. The first option would be by penetrating the group with Arabic/Iraqi agents. This is no small task as al Qaeda is an organization that thrives on competition via a trial by fire. Any agent would be required to participate in terrorist activities to rise in the ranks and provide valuable intelligence. The second option would be to turn existing members of al Qaeda with promises of amnesty, money and other means. No doubt one or perhaps both have been utilized, and this would not be possible without some degree of a lower standard of recruiting.
The official quoted in the ABC story states; “every time they capture one of his supporters, Zarqawi recruits someone new.” Perhaps this is true, but Zarqawi had better be careful, as the next recruit may be the one that hands the Coalition his head.
Addendum:
Alamo City Commando at the San Antonio Express-News Watch Blog notes ABC’s references to Zarqawi: “Jordanian rebel Abu Musab al-Zarqawi” and “the alleged terror mastermind”. I must be getting numb to this idiocy.
Also Read:
Dadmanly has a more cerebral debate with an opponent of the Iraq War.
The Blue States Conservatives looks at a Los Angeles Hispanic television station that is marketing itself in Los Angeles, CA Mexico. No joke.
17 Comments
Zarqawi narrowly avoided captured 7 weeks ago
According to U.S. military sources that spoke with ABC News, terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi narrowly avoided capture about 7 weeks ago, but left behind a mountain of intelligence that included his personal computer. The alleged terror mastermind…
Bill,
Thanks for the link, I appreciate the help. Great news about the Task Force, the net is closing …
I suggest that this would be an appropriate use of torture.
Task Force 626 Hot on Zarqawi’s Trail
Two weeks ago, The Word Unheard brought you the news that the Marines of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force had nearly captured Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Today, Bill Roggio of the fourth rail takes a more in depth look at the…
Dadmanly,
Another link well deserved. Best of luck.
xyz,
I am not of the mind that torture is the best way to obtain information.
Zarqawi Capture: That Close
Damn close is the only way to describe it. They missed him, but got his computer and some of his money. I am willing to say that we will get him. Some Iraqi tired of the “insurgency” will turn the…
1) I wake up every morning hoping that we capture, kill Zarqawi. It has been 16 months since the capture of Saddam, and 21 months since the fight with Uday and Qusay. We need another such ‘find’.
2) The Mexican channel marketing Los Angeles as part of Mexico won’t get anywhere. The Mexican nationalists and liberal loonies who support this view have failed to consider that their battle is not just against the white man. There are a lot of Koreans, Iranians, Chinese, etc. in Los Angeles as well. There are a lot of blacks in LA. The liberals who side with this cause will come up against other liberals for other causes.
Also, if LA became part of Mexico, they would lose what they come to the US for anyway – the $6.75/hr California minimum wage. Kind of defeats the purpose of annexing that region to Mexico, doesn’t it?
Further Thoughts on the Almost-Capture of Zarqawi
Last night, we discussed the recent near-capture of Zarqawi in Iraq. Today, Bill Roggio offers his thoughts over at The Fourth Rail. The exact text of the original ABC story reads thus: A source who had been inside the Zarqawi…
Bill,
I just posted a slightly different take on some of this:
The Adventures of Chester: Further Thoughts on the Almost-Capture of Zarqawi
His network is losing the effectiveness daily. Madman style attacks on reinforced coalition outposts. Lower quality recruits. More senior operatives detained. We will catch up to him. There are far fewer places to hide in Iraq than Afghanistan and the locals are far less loyal to him than Osama’s bought off former Taliban and warlords.
On The New Osama
According to the article, the computer files also yielded recent communications with al Qaeda leaders including a message from bin Laden’s No 2 man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, in which he urged Zarqawi to expand his operations outside Iraq to include attacks o…
The terrorist insurgents are caught in a quandary; if they attack American or coalition forces they are slaughtered, if they attack Iraqis they lose the support of the population. Revolutionary leaders from Mao to Castro depended on popular support for their success. Some, like the Viet Cong, were able to at least terrorize a politically apathetic population into acquiesence.
Faced with this difficult choice, they are attacking the target of least resistance; unarmed civilians.
Unfortunately for the terrorists, they are now caught up in a downward spiral.
Thursday Winds of War: April 28/05
Welcome! Our goal at Winds of Change.NET is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday…
I don’t believe Zarqawi is in Iraq at all. His name is there, but not his body…if we were to believe these stories, he’d be better than the Pimpernel.
Rather like Osama, who sent his telephone to Tora Bora, but stayed in Iran…
Target, target, target, cease fire!
Michael,
I disagree, as he si the operational commander and would need to be in constant touch with his subordinates to coordinate attacks in Iraq. I suspect he may be slipping over into Syria at times, but doubt he can run this operation without some level of hands on in country.
I believe he is not the operational commander; the guy running the terror infrastructure in Iraq is Imad Mughniyah, of Hezbollah. We do not even know what he looks like, altho he has long been our #1 target, long before Osama.
I think Zarqawi does a lot of border crossing, into both Syria and Iran, and spends minimum time in Iraq. He spent years to create his network, he can rely on them.
And remember that Osama exercized control over a terror network in the United States from a cave in Afghanistan. It’s not that hard, especially when you’ve got pictures of those babes to send to your guys…
cheers