US commander says al-Qaida trying to gain foothold in Iraq

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, January 30, 2004

US commander says al-Qaida trying to gain foothold in Iraq

Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terror network is trying to base itself in conflict-ridden Iraq, US ground forces commander Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez said on Thursday.

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Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terror network is trying to base itself in conflict-ridden Iraq, US ground forces commander Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez said on Jan. 29.

The general made the remarks after media reports said senior al-Qaida operative Hassan Ghul, accused by US officials as a senior recruiter and facilitator, was arrested by US-backed Kurdish forces in northern Iraq.

"The capture of Ghul is pretty strong proof that al-Qaida istrying to gain a foothold here to continue murderous campaign," Sanchez told reporters.

The capture is "great news for both Iraqis, the coalition and for the international community's war against terrorism," he added.

The US forces had blamed loyalists of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein for the rampant armed attacks, especially a series of suicide bombings, on military and civilian targets across Iraq.

While insisting the Islamic extremists and foreign terrorists that had infiltrated into the country were cooperating with former regime loyalists, the US army failed to provide evidence indicating the link.

An ambulance loaded with powerful explosives ripped through a local hotel housing foreigners in a busy district in Baghdad on Wednesday, killing six people including a South African.

Another car bomb exploded outside the headquarters of the US-led coalition in central Baghdad on Jan. 18, killing at least 24 people and injuring more than 100 others.

Source: Xinhua

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