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BACK TO : PROPAGANDA AND THE GWOT Year 6 - 2007
US says it killed key figure in Al Qaeda propaganda by E Sanders and T Susman 
US says it killed key figure in Al Qaeda propaganda, abductions By Edmund Sanders and Tina Susman, Los Angeles Times | May 4, 2007 BAGHDAD -- US forces raided a cluster of buildings and killed the chief propagandist for Al Qaeda in Iraq, a key figure in the abductions of journalist Jill Carroll and slain peace activist Tom Fox, the military said yesterday. A coalition of Sunni Arab insurgent groups that includes Al Qaeda in Iraq confirmed the death of Muharib Abdul Latif al-Jubouri on its website, saying he had been "martyred" in a clash. The raid near Taji, north of Baghdad, capped a six-day US offensive, dubbed Operation Rat Trap, aimed at Al Qaeda-related targets in several cities. US officials recently have shifted blame for most of the country's violence from Shi'ite Muslim militias to Sunni Muslim insurgents loyal to Al Qaeda. They accuse the insurgents of stepping up their activities in hopes of fueling sectarian warfare and derailing a US-Iraqi security plan. Since the plan's launch in mid-February, groups linked to Al Qaeda have claimed responsibility for several high-profile attacks, including a suicide bombing that killed nine US soldiers, and a blast that killed a lawmaker inside the Iraqi parliament building. Violence struck the heavily fortified Green Zone, where the parliament is located, again this week when incoming rockets killed four civilian contractors, the US Embassy reported yesterday. At least seven Iraqis died in mortar and gunfire attacks across the country yesterday, and police reported finding the bodies of 25 Iraqi men around Baghdad. All had been shot and appeared to be victims of sectarian death squads. The US military spokesman, Major General William B. Caldwell IV, said Jubouri and four associates were killed when they resisted attempts by US troops to detain them during a 2 a.m. raid Tuesday. Caldwell described Jubouri as a key player in the abduction of Carroll, a Christian Science Monitor reporter kidnapped in January 2006 and held for 82 days before being released. "He was responsible for the transportation and movement of Jill Carroll from her various hiding places," Caldwell said. "He was responsible for the propaganda and ransom videos." The Monitor later reported that Carroll did not recognize a photo of Jubouri that the military provided. Jubouri was believed to be the last person to have custody of Fox, who was kidnapped in November 2005 and discovered dead in March 2006. Jubouri was captured in 2003 by US-led forces but released in 2004. He settled with his family in Syria before returning in September to become minister of information for the Islamic State of Iraq, a parallel government established by Al Qaeda in Iraq, officials say. While in Syria, he is alleged to have smuggled money and foreign fighters into Iraq to help the insurgency. The announcement of Jubouri's death put to rest confusing reports about the death of a leading insurgent. In the past week, Iraqi officials have announced the deaths of two other leading Al Qaeda loyalists in Iraq: Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq; and Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, who heads the Islamic State of Iraq. After DNA testing confirmed Jubouri's identity, the body was released to a member of his tribe for transport to his home village for burial. Not knowing that the United States had just released Jubouri's body, Iraqi police at a checkpoint seized it and excitedly announced that they had a "high-value" suspect in their possession, according to Caldwell. Hours later, the confusion was resolved when US officials realized that the Iraqis had Jubouri's body. The body was then released again. Caldwell said he was not aware of anyone holding Masri's body. |