Cleaning Up Iraq and Capturing An Iranian-Linked Terrorist (updated 8/28)

By Andrew Cochran

From the press releases of the coalition forces, we can see that there's never a dull moment in Iraq:

1. Coalition forces in Diyala killed three terrorists, two of whom were wearing suicide vests, and detained an alleged al-Qaeda in Iraq leader. The AQI suspect is allegedly responsible for bombing attacks and assassinations.

2. Soldiers found 100 blasting caps, 20 rocket-propelled grenades, two 120 mm mortar rounds, a 60 mm mortar round, two anti-tank rounds and 35 parachute grenades in a Baghdad neighborhood.

3. In the best news of the day, we captured an important Iranian-linked terrorist leader responsible for killing Americans as well as Iraqis: "Coalition forces captured a suspected senior Special Groups leader Wednesday morning during an operation at Baghdad International Airport. Intelligence sources report that the captured man is part of the most senior social and operational circles of Special Groups. Most notably, he is believed to be responsible for the planning of the June 24, 2008 bombing of the Sadr City District Advisory Council meeting, where six Iraqis, two U.S. State Department employees and two U.S. service members were killed. Ten other Iraqis were wounded in the blast. The man has been known to travel in and out of Iraq to neighboring nations including Iran and Lebanon, where it is believed he meets and helps run the Iranian-backed Special Groups in Iraq."

Anybody have an idea on this guy's identity? Note his travels to Iran and Lebanon - sounds like someone with a Hezbollah passport. UPDATE, August 28: Mystery solved according to the AP (thanks to Rick Henika for the link): "U.S. forces arrested a top Shiite official in Iraq's government as he stepped off a plane in Baghdad, a political ally said Thursday, and a U.S. military intelligence official linked the man to a June bombing that killed four Americans and six Iraqis. Ali al-Lami's arrest raised fresh concerns about Iranian and Shiite militia influence in the top ranks of Iraq's leadership. Without naming al-Lami, the U.S. military in Iraq said the suspect arrested Wednesday evening is believed to be a senior leader of "special groups" — Iranian-backed militiamen in Iraq. Al-Lami's detention could also further discredit attempts by the Shiite-led government to keep top supporters of Saddam Hussein out of senior government jobs. Al-Lami was in charge of that task, as head of a committee that screens former Baath party members. He and his family were returning to Baghdad from Lebanon, where he underwent medical treatment, when he was arrested at the city's international airport, said Qaiser Watout, a member of al-Lami's committee."

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