Enemy Actions
A report from the New York Times says that al Qaeda has a master plan to shoot down American helicopters. Captured documents explain the strategy in detail.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 17 — Documents captured from Iraqi insurgents indicate that some of the recent fatal attacks against American helicopters are a result of a carefully planned strategy to focus on downing coalition aircraft, one that American officials say has been carried out by mounting coordinated assaults with machine guns, rockets and surface-to-air missiles.
The documents, said to have been drafted by Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia, show that the militants were preparing to “concentrate on the air force.” The contents of the documents are described in an American intelligence report that was reviewed by The New York Times.
Seized near Baghdad, the documents reflect the insurgents’ military preparations from late last year, including plans for attacking aircraft using a variety of weapons.
Officials say they are a fresh indication that the United States is facing an array of “adaptive” adversaries in Iraq, enemies who are likely to step up their attacks as American forces expand their efforts to secure Baghdad, the Iraqi capital.
“Attacks on coalition aircraft probably will increase if helicopter missions expand during the latest phase of the Baghdad Security Plan or if insurgents seek to emulate their recent successes,” notes the intelligence report, which analyzes the recent helicopter crashes.
The American military has said that seven helicopters have been downed since Jan. 20, a figure that exceeds the total number of coalition aircraft shot down in 2006.
Inquiring minds want to know exactly where they are getting the weapons. Someone is facilitating these attacks and supplying the weaponry.
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The Moderate Voice » Blog Archive » Iraqi Terrorists Adapting — February 18, 2007 @ 5:34 am
By jpe, February 18, 2007 @ 3:58 pm
I’d bet Saudi Arabia. They have the strongest interest in funding al-Qaeda in Iraq and they have cash a plenty, along with the infrastructure to get the cash & weapons there.