It’s that time again for an IED roll-up, presented by Tootsie Rolls and Dr. Pepper dealers. Just kidding. That would be neat though. Anyway, on to the IED stories you don’t hear about. It’s been a busy week in Iraq, with soldiers finding enough stuff to even scare (though not likely) a Texan.

November 22 - A joint operation between Iraqi and Coalition troops resulted in the detainment of 11 suspected arms dealers and the recovery of two large weapons caches. Soldiers with the 2nd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 8th Iraqi Army Division worked with Coalition forces to rid the Najaf area of anti-Iraq forces. The first cache contained 45 AK-47 assault rifles, three sniper rifles, four machine guns, nine rocket-propelled grenade rounds, three RPG launchers, two RPG sights, 243 Russian hand grenades, 18 fragmentation grenades, three pineapple grenades and more than 500 rounds of ammunition. The second cache included six AK-47 assault rifles, two sniper rifles with scopes, four RPG rounds, more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition and a large amount of U.S. currency.

November 26 - A local citizen alerted Iraqi Army soldiers on duty at a checkpoint to the location of a roadside bomb in Sadr City. Iraqi and Coalition soldiers secured the site while an explosive ordnance disposal team dismantled the bomb, a 122 mm mortar round rigged with a remote detonating device.

November 26 - Iraqi soldiers secured the scene of an attempted improvised explosive device attack in the Abu Ghraib area west of Baghdad. Coalition soldiers shot and killed a suspected terrorist after spotting him trying to hide a 155 mm artillery round with an attached detonation device in a pile of street trash. Soldiers with the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division responded to the scene to provide security while an explosive ordnance disposal team destroyed the bomb.

November 27 - [Thwarted assassination attempt] Information from local citizens helped Iraqi Police and Coalition troops prevent an assassination attempt in the Ghazaliyah neighborhood of western Baghdad. Citizens reported seeing explosives, wires and a timer under a silver sedan, prompting Coalition soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division to respond to the scene. Iraqi Police officers also responded and took the lead in investigating the vehicle. The car was originally thought to be a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device. Military officials later said it may have been part of an assassination plot against a particular individual, a prisoner during the former regime. An Iraqi explosive ordnance disposal team disabled the bomb, a pound and a half of explosives and a radio transmitter attached to the vehicle’s gas tank.

November 27 – Iraqi Army troops from the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division and Coalition forces discovered and confiscated two caches. Troops found a cache north of Sa’Dah, which consisted of one anti-tank mine, 28 122 mm rounds, one 120 mm round, one 100 mm round, eight propane tanks filled with explosives, seven blasting caps and other miscellaneous bomb making materials. Later, soldiers discovered a cache of 35 hollowed-out 155 mm rounds north of Husaybah.

November 28 – Members of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force found two weapons caches 1.5 kilometers north of Sa’Dah. The first cache consisted of six 57 mm anti-tank mines, a 20 pound bag of propellant, two boxes of 20 artillery fuses, one 50 round box of 14.5 mm ammunition, 200 loose rounds of 14.5 mm ammunition, a small bag of mortar propellant, three Chinese fragmentation grenades, two 14.5 mm guns with spare barrels, a 14.5 mm twin gun mount, a 12.5 mm gun mount and seven 82 mm mortar rounds. The second cache contained two AK-47s and three AK-47 magazines, five bags of artillery propellant, four boxes of artillery fuses, one grenade, one mortar charge, one antitank mine, 10 82 mm mortar rounds,13 rocket-propelled grenade rounds, one box of 12.5 mm ammunition, five 100 mm artillery shells, seven 160 mm high-explosive shells, a threefoot tube with propellant sticks, a Syrian made long-range phone base, a Nokia telephone and a washing machine timer with batteries. An explosive ordnance disposal team destroyed both caches. [Editor's Note (that's me): First of all, this is a HUGE catch. This is something that isn't like most caches found. It's significant and important. For those that don't know, 14.5 mm rounds are the same size rounds used in most ANTI-AIRCRAFT machine guns. While I don't know exactly what type of 14.5 mm machine guns were confiscated, I know that they are very powerful and deadly in the wrong hands...well, in any hands. HERE is an idea of what the gun may look like, without the mount.]

November 28 - Troops from the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division and Coalition forces discovered two caches just north of Sa’Dah. One cache consisted of four artillery shells, a remote detonating kit, one AK-47 assault rifle with two magazines and a box of 50 14.5 mm shells. An additional cache found nearby consisted of one 120mm mortar round, five boxes of blasting caps, a fragmentary grenade and six sticks of PE-4 explosive. Both caches were guarded until an explosive ordnance disposal team destroyed them.

November 28 - An Iraqi Police patrol searching an abandoned vehicle discovered two bombs inside it shortly before the owner returned. The bombs were connected to a remote control inside the Chevy Caprice sedan they found in the Huriya District. The owner of the vehicle was arrested when he returned to the car while the police were investigating.

November 28 - Members of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force apprehended three men on motorcycles 10.5 kilometers east of Husaybah. The military-aged men matched a description given to the troops by a farmer who said they were seen emplacing improvised explosive devices in the area. The men on motorcycles were observed watching a cache site that was discovered earlier in the day. The men were interested in Coalition forces actions and matched the farmer’s description. The men were taken into custody pending further investigation.

November 29 - –Troops from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force were attacked by an ineffective suicide car bomber while providing security for an explosive ordnance team. The soldiers swept the area and apprehended nine men in connection with the incident. Three car bombs were also found nearby. The car bombs were detonated in place by EOD and the detainees turned over to authorities for further questioning.

November 29 – Troops from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division discovered and confiscated explosives north of Ramadi. The five explosives discovered were found in single, one-pound blocks.

November 29 - Troops from the 1st Battalion, 4th Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force and Coalition forces discovered and confiscated four caches during sweeps of Karmah. The first cache, found north of Karmah, consisted of 20 one-gallon cans of black gun powder, one rifle and approximately 120,000 primer caps. The other three caches, found south of Karmah, consisted of 71 82 mm mortar rounds, 13 61 mm mortar rounds, one 122 mm rocket, seven 120 mm mortar rounds, 600 mortar fuses and other various bomb-making materials.

November 30 - Baghdad Police surrounded a car bomb in the northbound lane of Shari Al Imam Ali in the Thawra District. Police explosives experts arrived and disabled the bomb. Police received a report the day before of a possible car bomb in eastern Baghdad. The caller told police the car bomb was parked next to a school in the Beida district. The vehicle was found with four artillery shells and a flammable gas cylinder inside. Police explosives experts defused the bomb, with no injuries reported.

You can read this and all my other IED roll-ups by clicking on the IED Roll-Up link on the right.

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