US and Iraqi troops intensified a massive offensive against suspected al-Qaeda strongholds northeast of Baghdad yesterday, killing at least 30 suspected insurgents, the US military said.
The launch of the operation on Tuesday was followed by a massive truck bombing at a Shiite mosque in Baghdad that left at least 87 people dead, the latest toll from security and hospital officials showed.
Up to 7,500 US troops and 2,500 Iraqi forces poured into the provincial capital of Baqubah in the largest assault ever launched in Diyala Province, which has seen intense fighting in recent months.
The offensive, which involved ground forces, helicopters and heavily-armored vehicles, was the largest single assault since US forces invaded Fallujah in November 2004.
"These criminals will know no safe place to hide in Diyala," US Brigadier General Mick Bednarek said.
"The people of Diyala are tired of the terror and violence these al-Qaeda thugs have brought to their province and are cooperating with us in order to root them out," he said.
In addition to killing 30 alleged al-Qaeda militants, US and Iraqi forces uncovered several weapons caches, including four homemade bombs in homes and another 10 bombs buried underground, the US military said.
Two suspected militants were killed while planting roadside bombs in a village outside Diyala, the statement said.
Iraqi army and police forces are also participating in the assault.
"Our forces killed 11 terrorists and arrested 12 in Baqubah. We also confiscated weapons and equipment, including swords used for cutting off people's heads," Army Colonel Najib al-Salahi said on Tuesday.
"This operation is just beginning and we will continue to strike al-Qaeda no matter where they hide and we won't rest until the job is done," Bednarek said.
As US and Iraqi reinforcements have surged into Baghdad in recent months, insurgents have retreated to areas around the capital, particularly Diyala Province, where the US military has not until recently had a large presence.
The new strongholds have allowed militants to mount a deadly drumbeat of attacks in Baghdad. On Tuesday a truck bomb loaded with explosives and gas canisters detonated outside a Shiite mosque, killing at least 87 people.
The attack, which wounded at least another 242 people, was the worst attack in the capital in two months.
At the same time, insurgents in Diyala have carried out increasingly sophisticated attacks, often combining ambushes, roadside bombs and snipers, making the area in and around Baqubah one of the deadliest places in Iraq.
At least one US soldier was killed in fighting in Diyala Province on Tuesday, the US military said.
"One Task Force Lightning soldier died as a result of injuries sustained from an explosion near his vehicle while conducting operations in Diyala province," it said, adding that two other troops were wounded in the blast.
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