Suspected Terrorists Detained; Tips Lead to Weapons Caches

• Members of the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, and an explosive ordnance disposal unit found and performed a controlled detonation of a roadside bomb south of Baghdad Jan. 25, officials said. The bomb consisted of three "daisy-chained" - set up to explode one after the other -- charges in oil barrels with 30 to 40 pounds of homemade explosives in each barrel.
• Soldiers from Multinational Division Baghdad's 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, discovered a weapons cache consisting of 56 sticks of TNT, one box of .50-caliber rounds, one block of C4 explosive, four 60 mm rounds, three individual fuses, and one box of fuses late Jan. 25.
• Soldiers from MNDB's 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, conducted a cordon-and-search operation based on a tip from an Iraqi citizen Jan. 25 and detained two suspected terrorists for questioning. The two men's names and descriptions matched those in the tip. The patrol also found a pistol and a diagrammed location of a planned ambush on coalition forces.
• Near Najaf, about 100 miles south of Baghdad, Iraqi soldiers and coalition forces nabbed 22 suspected terrorists Jan. 25. Troops from the 2nd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 8th Iraqi Army Division, and 3rd Battalion, 16th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, spearheaded the joint mission.
• Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, discovered two improvised explosive devices in Haswah, 25 miles south of Baghdad. The first IED consisted of two 130 mm pressure plates and one 125 mm round. The second included one 125 mm round. Explosive ordnance disposal teams removed both IEDs without incident.
• An explosive ordnance disposal detachment from the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, responded to 25 calls and eliminated more than 15 IEDs over the past week in central Baghdad. Headed by Navy Lt. Sam Brasfield, the three-team detachment also found and destroyed about 300 pounds of unexploded ordnance in a continuing effort to rid the streets of the deadly threats, officials said.
• In central Baghdad, Iraqi army soldiers manning a checkpoint came under attack Jan. 23 by terrorists who fled the scene in a vehicle. Three suspected terrorists were later detained by an Iraqi army patrol based on a tip received a tip from a local national who pointed to the vehicle's location. The patrol also confiscated 9mm rounds and 9,206 Iraqi dinar.
• Also on Jan. 23, Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers found six weapons caches southwest of Baghdad. The caches consisted of improvised explosive device-making material, batteries, wire, blasting caps, five 50-gallon drums, two fuel cans, one propane tank, communications equipment, six AK-47s, an RPK2 rifle, a Dishka heavy machine gun, and ammunition.
• Responding to a tip, a patrol from Troop A, 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, found a large weapons cache north of Baghdad Jan. 22. The cache consisted of a complete 120 mm mortar system, 14 57 mm rockets, 11 152 mm artillery rounds, 10 130 mm artillery rounds, 19 B-5 rocket fuses, 50 hand grenades, and a wide assortment of other ammunition. "It was a great find," said Army Maj. David Olson, the brigade spokesman. "It is great to see people standing up and doing their civic responsibility to help maintain a safe and secure environment for their fellow citizens by providing tips such as this one."

(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq news releases.)