MPs Kill Four Drive-by Shooting Suspects in Mosul

Early in the day, anti-coalition forces engaged a Task Force Olympia military police patrol in Mosul with small-arms fire. The military police pursued but were not able to apprehend the suspects. Late in the afternoon, a second patrol noticed a vehicle similar to the one that engaged the soldiers earlier. Four suspects opened fire when the MPs approached the vehicle. The MPs returned fire, killing all four suspects, the news release said.

Two wounded coalition soldiers were taken to the 67th Combat Support Hospital in Mosul. Their injuries are not life-threatening.

Inside the vehicle, coalition soldiers found three AK-47 assault rifles, a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, four RPG rounds, four RPG boosters, four grenades, a 60 mm mortar round and other assorted ordnance, the news release reported. Iraqi security forces and coalition soldiers are investigating whether the vehicle and its occupants were involved in any recent attacks against Iraqi government officials, Iraqi security forces or coalition soldiers.

A Task Force Olympia spokesman quoted in the news release said insurgents are managing only to make things harder on themselves. "The series of attacks in Mosul (March 28) against Iraqi government offices and personnel, Iraqi security forces, and against coalition soldiers only strengthens our resolve to stand together against these enemy forces who continue to try to hinder Iraqi progress," said Army Lt. Col. Joseph Piek.

Also on March 28, a Task Force Olympia Stryker vehicle was attacked in western Mosul, according to another CJTF 7 news release. An RPG hit the external armor on the left rear of the Stryker. The armor caused the RPG to detonate before it hit the vehicle's hull; however, shrapnel ignited an external fuel can, causing the vehicle to catch fire.

The Stryker crew was able to escape from the vehicle without injury, the news release said.

Five suspected terrorists were captured during a joint raid conducted by Multinational Division Center-South soldiers and the Special Purpose Platoon of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps March 26 near Karbala, another CJTF 7 news release said.

During the raid, the suspected terrorists opened fire on coalition troops. The troops returned fire and subdued the suspects. No one was wounded. The raid team confiscated weapons, ammunition, documents and communication devices. The confiscated documents indicate the site was a terrorist logistics base, the news release said.

Soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division's 141st Engineer Battalion detained two people at a checkpoint and discovered nearly 20 million dinar the equivalent of about $60,000 U.S. dollars -- in their car west of Samarra on March 27, another CJTF 7 news release said. The detainees were taken to a nearby coalition detention facility for questioning.