Concerned Local Citizens find IED, cache in Arab Jabour

MNF-I reports that CLCs turned over a cache,

Concerned Local Citizens found an improvised explosive device formed from rigged land mines and ammunition near Patrol Base Murray in Arab Jabour Dec. 23.

The size of the cache is significant,

The weapons caches consisted of 23 shape charges, three rocket propelled grenades, two 57 mm projectiles, four 73 mm propellant charges, 20 pounds of TNT, eight projectile fuses, one RPG warhead, six boxes of DSHKA high-caliber machine gun rounds, one fragmentation grenade, six 4.5-pound blocks of TNT, five pounds of unknown bulk explosive, two pounds of PE4, and 14 120 mm mortar propellant charges.

But even more significant is the fact that this find (and others) are occuring in Arab Jabour, which until The Surge was used to transport arms from Iran into Baghdad and to a certain extent by Al Qaeda as one of the belts that supported the insurgency in Baghdad.

The battle of Baghdad has been won.

Battles currently ongoing include from Arab Jabour to Babel to Baghdad to Karbala also known as the "Triangle of Death". This is the area of operations of the 3rd ID. Also, currently in play is the "Sunni Triangle" which includes the Diyala and Salah ad Din Provinces. This area of operations (to include further north into Samarra) belongs to 1st AD.

Shia militia and Al Qaeda are being defeated wholesale in both of these areas as Concerned Local Citizens gain in strength and power. These groups are providing Special Operation forces with valuable intelligence to kill and capture leaders and members of both of these groups.

These joint Iraqi and US Military actions, taken together with Awakenings, formation of CLCs, and Talabani's/al-Hashimi's formation of a National Unity Government, do not bode well for Shia Militias nor Al Qaeda in Iraq which are being defeated wholesale in Iraq.

The Surge was meant to:

1. Enhance and promote Awakening movements which originated with the Marines in Al Anbar in order to diminish support for insurgents.

2. Quell the insurgencies (both from Shia Militias and Al Qaeda in Iraq). While Al Qaeda in Iraq was the initial focus, Shia Militias were also an ancillary objective.

3. Provide forces necessary to simultaneously execute operations all over Iraq to prevent insurgents from just relocating from one area to another.

4. Trap and destroy insurgents for eventual destruction by not allowing them to just reposition.

5. Provide breathing space for the Iraqi Government by securing Baghdad to allow it to govern to reach its benchmarks.

6. Promote National Reconciliation which is occurring now with the formation of a National Unity Government.

In six short months since The Surge has been in full force, three objectives have been accomplished, the fourth is ongoing, and the sixth may well make the fifth occur.

It is no wonder that General Petreous stated accomplishment of objectives was ahead of schedule.

All this good news has made the MSM suddenly silent on the war in Iraq, but has upheld the naming of the operation, that is Operation Iraqi Freedom.

It will be interesting to see what Iraq is like next Christmas and New Year.