19 cops, Sahwa fighters killed in Diala ambush
September 24, 2008 - 04:35:23
DIALA / Aswat al-Iraq: Nineteen police personnel and Sahwa fighters on Wednesday were killed in an ambush in the south of Baaquba city, a security source said.
“Eleven policemen and eight Sahwa members were killed on Wednesday in an armed ambush in the village of Dulaymat, Bani Saad district (30 km south of Baaquba) while they were conducting a search raid to track down al-Qaeda operatives in the area,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq.
There were three high-ranking officers among the dead, the source noted.
Diala province, a mix of Sunnis and Shiites, extends to the northeast of Baghdad as far as the Iranian border. Its capital is Baaquba, 57 km northeast of Baghdad. It covers an area of 17,685 square kilometers (6,828 sq mi).
A large portion of the province is drained by the Diala River, a major tributary of the Tigris.
Because of its proximity to two major sources of water, Diala’s main industry is agriculture, primarily dates grown in large Date Palm groves. It is also recognized as the orange capital of the Middle East.
In January 2008 Operation Phantom Phoenix was launched in an attempt to eradicate the remnants of al-Qaeda network following the Diala province campaign between 2006 and 2007.
SS (S)/SR
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