Iraqi, U.S. Soldiers Detain Terror Suspects, Secure Weapons Caches
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12, 2006 � Iraqi and U.S. soldiers detained terror suspects and seized weapons caches in operations throughout Iraq yesterday and today, military officials reported today.
Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 6th Iraqi Army Division, detained a suspected terrorist and discovered a weapons cache during an early morning raid north of Baghdad today. U.S. troops from Task Force Ironhorse, a military training team with the 4th Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, supported the Iraqi soldiers. The soldiers took fire from the insurgents, but quickly suppressed the firefight and captured a suspected terrorist.
The Iraqi soldiers also discovered a wide variety of weapons, including improvised explosive devices, mortar tubes, mortar rounds, rocket propelled grenade launchers and rounds, AK-47 assault rifles, rockets and rocket launchers, grenades a machine gun, C-4 explosives, TNT, a 152mm round, a tazer, and Iraqi Army uniforms and ID cards.
Iraqi troops in Ramadi and Ubaydi secured hidden enemy weapons caches yesterday, officials said.
Soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division, found two caches during west of Ramadi and Mulaab. Soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division, found two caches west of Ubaydi.
The caches included a radio base station, a 9-volt battery, a washing machine timer, blasting caps, small-arms munitions, mortar and rocket rounds, hand grenades, artillery rounds, an AK-47 assault riffle, a bolt-action rifle and seven empty AK-47 magazines, officials said.
The caches were turned over to the authorities for disposal. No injuries or damage were reported.
Meanwhile, in northern Iraq, U.S. soldiers detained 21 suspected terrorists while finding three weapons caches yesterday in Tal Afar and Mosul through tips by local Iraqis and by U.S. troop actions, officials said.
The raid in Tal Afar against a suspected terrorist cell took place just after midnight and involved soldiers from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment. The soldiers found mortar rounds, small-arms ammunition and a home-made mine. Seven men were detained at the site, officials said. Two raids in Mosul involved soldiers from the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, who captured eight suspected terrorists. One of the suspects is believed to have conducted mortar attacks on nearby civilian targets, officials said.
A tip yesterday from two Mosul residents who believed they had found an improvised explosive device led to the discovery anti-tank mines and an artillery round. The residents tipped of the Iraqi police, who then searched the area. An Iraqi explosive ordnance disposal team responded and found the hidden contraband, officials said.
Also yesterday, soldiers from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, captured three suspected terrorists near a weapons cache in the Tikrit area. The cache had mortar rounds and rockets and was discovered near an area where numerous rocket and mortar attacks had originated, officials said.
Finally, an ineffective rocket attack against a base near Balad led to the capture of three terrorist suspects yesterday. Soldiers from the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, stopped the suspects' vehicle after coalition aircraft observed them the suspects trying to flee the area, officials said.
(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq, Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq and Task Force Ironhorse news releases.)