Obama strategy has failed

[grandpakhalif]

Just posting news lejusticier will definitely remove

http://news.yahoo.com/islamic-state-exp ... 45693.html

60 nations against them now they control half of syria

[SahanGalbeed]

Yeah , kind of like saying nobody's has found a cure to AIDS yet , let 's all do each other in the butt in the mean time .


Very unrefined thought process my friend , remember I am one the few true believers of the "no child left behind " khalif , okay ?

[gegiroor]

ISIS fights like a state... It fields more than 25,000 fighters, including a hard core of ex-Baathist professionals and Qaeda veterans. It has a hierarchical unit organization and rank structure, populated by former regular officers of Saddam Hussein's military," added Kilcullen in the Australian Quarterly Essay.

It is mainly average Sunnis fighting back against sectarian Shia-led government, and the ISIS bogeyman is being used to justify the onslaught against Sunnis. There was a genocide that took place within the last 2 months in Tikrit where sectarian Shia government has massacred tens of thousands of young Sunni men where the rest of the world looked the other way, and the Western media purposely chose to hide the truth about this genocide.

Grandpa, that article is soaring up a campaign against the long-suffering Sunnis in Iraq. Don't be fooled by it. The fighting in Iraq is overwhelmingly done by former members of Republican Guard and Baathist forces. The ISIS contribution is very minimal - it has been reported to be less than 2,000 men. The tens of thousands of experienced fighters are ordinary Sunnis who are defending their homes and towns. Even the leadership is held by the former Baathist officers.

If you try to read the fine prints that the Western propagandists are trying to conceal, you will really see they are denying the ordinary Sunni Muslims in Iraq to have a say in their country's affairs, and this hype-up threat is being engineered in order to re-energize the war against Sunnis in Iraq.

This is all propaganda. There is no ISIS state in Iraq. It is the ordinary Sunnis who are making an effort of defending their regions.

[Basra-]

Yeah , kind of like saying nobody's has found a cure to AIDS yet , let 's all do each other in the butt in the mean time .


Very unrefined thought process my friend , remember I am one the few true believers of the "no child left behind " khalif , okay ?

Wow. Sahan, Thanks for bringing up Aids.



grandpa


ISIS have the advantage of being an invisible army. Gorilla style. Go out, slaughter weak, unarmed people and run back to their caves. Its the oldest technique of savage idiots Gorilla war, from Vikings vs Romans, to African mau mau vs European Colonists. Why cant they get their acts together? Come up with a strategy. Start with a leader, an army, and then have some moral code based solely on Islam. Believe me, US will submit and respect them. Even begin negotiation of recognizing them. Coward gangs in black clothes, black flags like possessed demons does not make them win. They are losers to start with!

[grandpakhalif]

ISIS fights like a state... It fields more than 25,000 fighters, including a hard core of ex-Baathist professionals and Qaeda veterans. It has a hierarchical unit organization and rank structure, populated by former regular officers of Saddam Hussein's military," added Kilcullen in the Australian Quarterly Essay.

It is mainly average Sunnis fighting back against sectarian Shia-led government, and the ISIS bogeyman is being used to justify the onslaught against Sunnis. There was a genocide that took place within the last 2 months in Tikrit where sectarian Shia government has massacred tens of thousands of young Sunni men where the rest of the world looked the other way, and the Western media purposely chose to hide the truth about this genocide.

Grandpa, that article is soaring up a campaign against the long-suffering Sunnis in Iraq. Don't be fooled by it. The fighting in Iraq is overwhelmingly done by former members of Republican Guard and Baathist forces. The ISIS contribution is very minimal - it has been reported to be less than 2,000 men. The tens of thousands of experienced fighters are ordinary Sunnis who are defending their homes and towns. Even the leadership is held by the former Baathist officers.

If you try to read the fine prints that the Western propagandists are trying to conceal, you will really see they are denying the ordinary Sunni Muslims in Iraq to have a say in their country's affairs, and this hype-up threat is being engineered in order to re-energize the war against Sunnis in Iraq.

This is all propaganda. There is no ISIS state in Iraq. It is the ordinary Sunnis who are making an effort of defending their regions.

If its all propaganda why is ISIS so successful in Syria? Baathists there are aligned with Assad regime

[gegiroor]

Iraq's most wanted, Izzat al-Douri, reportedly found dead in Hamrin

[youtube]watch?v=AxCwgsBI7VM[/youtube]

Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (ra) was the brain behind the recent surge of Sunni Arabs in Iraq defeating the sectarian Iran and other powers-backed puppet Shia government in Baghdad and Mossad controlled Kurdish Peshmergas. He was the highest ranking Iraqi official living from Saddam Hussein (ra) era.

Saddam’s Daughter Happy to see Militants Crush Iraqi Government

13/6/2014

By Alexander Whitcomb and Halat Rebwar

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Raghad Saddam Hussein, exiled daughter of the former Iraqi dictator who was ousted in 2003 and later hanged, expressed joy at the Iraqi military collapse against an Islamist onslaught.

“I am happy to see all these victories,” she told the Al-Quds newspaper in Jordan, after militants captured Tikrit, her father’s hometown. “These are victories of my father’s fighters and my uncle Izzat Al-Douri,” she added, referring to the leader of the Iraqi Baathist Party, which is officially banned by the government.

Al-Douri has been identified as the main commander of former Baathists, who have partnered with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to capture Mosul, Tikrit, and other predominantly Sunni cities. He was a senior military commander and vice president under Saddam, and avoided capture by US-led coalition forces following the dictator’s collapse in 2003.

Raghad, Saddam’s eldest daughter, was confident the militants would successfully undermine the current government.

“I am relieved. Someday, I will return to Iraq and visit my father’s grave,” she said. “Maybe it won’t happen very soon, but it will certainly happen.”

In 2006, the freshly-elected Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki placed Raghad and al-Douri on a “wanted list” of prominent Baathist figures. Al-Douri topped the list, and Raghad was number 16.

Al-Douri evaded capture and formed several brigades that were active in the insurgency campaign against Iraq’s post-Saddam government and US occupying forces. He was thought to have resided in Syria, Qatar and within the country itself at various stages, before resurfacing in the latest conflict over the last days.

Jordan granted Raghad and her children asylum for “humanitarian reasons.” Months later, her father was executed for crimes against humanity, and the Iraqi government denied her request for his body to be buried in Yemen, pending the withdrawal of international forces.

In mid-2007, international police agency Interpol issued a warrant for her arrest, charging her and her associates with involvement in insurgent activity.

Source: http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/130620142

[gegiroor]

Jaysh Rijal al-Tariqa al-Naqshbandia (JRTN)

Formed: December 2006
Disbanded: Groupis active.
First Attack: February 2009: JRTN attacked US troops with grenades in the Diyala province (Casualties unknown).[1]
Last Attack February 18, 2011: Senior commander of JRNT accused of being involved in an IED attack in a car showroom in the town
of Muqdadiyah (7 killed). [2]
Updated July 15, 2014

NARRATIVE SUMMARY

Jaysh al-Tariqa al-Naqshbandia (JRTN) is a large and prominent Sufi insurgent group in Iraq. JRTN is named after the Naqshbandi Sufi movement, which was founded in 1389 by Baha al-din Naqshband. [3] Beginning during Ottoman rule, the Naqshabadi order constituted more of a political association or patronage network than a religious association. Through the order, its members built connections with like-minded political and business leaders. [4] Due to Sufism’s peaceful and apolitical reputation, it was tolerated under the Saddam Hussein regime. [5] The Naqshabadi order recruited Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, who became its patron sometime during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Al-Duri used his position in Hussein’s government to create a bond between the Baath Party and the JRTN during the Iran-Iraq War, thereby expanding the group’s popularity and solidifying his own power and influence. [6] JRTN was formally established in December 2006 following the political disarray in the Baath party after the execution of Saddam Hussein; the Baath party split, with some members following Muhammad Younis al-Ahmed, who was connected with the Al-Awda movement, and others following al-Duri and the JRTN. The JNRT first acted as to protect Naqshbandi order members from persecution at the hands of extremists such as AQI. The group also rejected AQI tactics that led to the death of many Sunnis and Iraqis, and thus decided to form their own group to fight Coalition forces. [7]

From 2007-2011, JRTN fought for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq and claimed responsibility for attacks involving mortars, road bombs, and rockets, as well as larger-scale attacks against Coalition forces. [8] However, JRTN’s ideology remained nationalistic; as an official spokesman for JRTN stated on Al-Zawra Iraqi channel, "we [the JRTN] fight for the integrity and unity of Iraq, land and people, to maintain its Arab and Islamic identity," fighting for nationalist, rather than Sufi, ideals. [9]

After the Coalition’s withdrawal in 2011, JRTN changed its goals to the overthrow of the Maliki government and the replacement of the constitution drawn up under Coalition auspices. [10]

JRTN increased its political operations to take advantage of the increase in anti-government protests in 2013; JRTN successfully increased support for its nationalistic platform and its anti-Maliki policies using the Free Iraq Uprising movement, which concentrated its efforts in Fallujah, Tikrit, Mosul, and Hawija. [11] After Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) attempted to clear out a protest in Hawija’s “Pride and Honor” Square in April 2013, JRTN declared that it would begin attacking ISF in a new campaign against Baghdad. [12] Clashes between JRTN and ISF throughout 2013 demonstrated a shift to more conventional warfare, which was a shift from JRTN’s normal procedure of using covert cells to carry out attacks. [13] [14] JRTN operations in 2013 may also have been directed against Kurds in an attempt to stamp out ethnic separatism incompatible with JRTN’s nationalist agenda. [15]

It is becoming clear that members of JRTN have been providing critical assistance to ISIS’s operations in Iraq. [16] Al-Douri himself may be acting as a commander of ISIS forces. ISIS success in capturing Iraqi cities was dependent on the military expertise and local connections brought by JRTN members. [17] However, cooperation between ISIS and the Baathists will likely be short lived; ISIS’s goal of creating a Caliphate is antithetical to the JRTN’s nationalism. Members of JRTN probably support ISIS only because of its anti-al-Maliki stance. There have been reports that ISIS has killed Baathists in Mosul in order to consolidate its authority and discourage sects that could feasibly negotiate with the government or oppose their vision for a Caliphate. [18]

LEADERSHIP

Sheikh Abdullah Mustafa al-Naqshbandi (Unknown to Unknown): Leader. [19]
Wathiq Alwan al Amiri (Unknown to December 12, 2009): Media Coordinator; arrested by Iraqi and US forces in Tikrit Iraq December 12, 2009.[20]
Abd al Majid Hadithi (Unknown to December 12, 2009): Former Media Manager, Propaganda Distributor; arrested by Iraqi and US forces in Tikrit Iraq December 12, 2009.[21]
Muhanned Muhammed Abd al Jabbar al Rawi (Unknown to December 12, 2009): Media Gatherer, Producer, Show-caser; arrested by Iraqi and US forces in Tikrit Iraq December 12, 2009.[22]
Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, aka Naqshbandi Sheikh. (December 2006 to Present): Leader of JRTN and HCJL. While there has been a significant lack of information concerning al-Duri following the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, he is apparently still alive and active.[23]

IDEOLOGY & GOALS

• Nationalist

• Sufi moderate

• Sunni

.
.
.

Source: http://web.stanford.edu/group/mappingmi ... ps/view/75

[Alpharabius]

Iraq's most wanted, Izzat al-Douri, reportedly found dead in Hamrin

[youtube]watch?v=AxCwgsBI7VM[/youtube]

Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (ra) was the brain behind the recent surge of Sunni Arabs in Iraq defeating the sectarian Iran and other powers-backed puppet Shia government in Baghdad and Mossad controlled Kurdish Peshmergas. He was the highest ranking Iraqi official living from Saddam Hussein (ra) era.

Saddam’s Daughter Happy to see Militants Crush Iraqi Government

13/6/2014

By Alexander Whitcomb and Halat Rebwar

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Raghad Saddam Hussein, exiled daughter of the former Iraqi dictator who was ousted in 2003 and later hanged, expressed joy at the Iraqi military collapse against an Islamist onslaught.

“I am happy to see all these victories,” she told the Al-Quds newspaper in Jordan, after militants captured Tikrit, her father’s hometown. “These are victories of my father’s fighters and my uncle Izzat Al-Douri,” she added, referring to the leader of the Iraqi Baathist Party, which is officially banned by the government.

Al-Douri has been identified as the main commander of former Baathists, who have partnered with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to capture Mosul, Tikrit, and other predominantly Sunni cities. He was a senior military commander and vice president under Saddam, and avoided capture by US-led coalition forces following the dictator’s collapse in 2003.

Raghad, Saddam’s eldest daughter, was confident the militants would successfully undermine the current government.

“I am relieved. Someday, I will return to Iraq and visit my father’s grave,” she said. “Maybe it won’t happen very soon, but it will certainly happen.”

In 2006, the freshly-elected Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki placed Raghad and al-Douri on a “wanted list” of prominent Baathist figures. Al-Douri topped the list, and Raghad was number 16.

Al-Douri evaded capture and formed several brigades that were active in the insurgency campaign against Iraq’s post-Saddam government and US occupying forces. He was thought to have resided in Syria, Qatar and within the country itself at various stages, before resurfacing in the latest conflict over the last days.

Jordan granted Raghad and her children asylum for “humanitarian reasons.” Months later, her father was executed for crimes against humanity, and the Iraqi government denied her request for his body to be buried in Yemen, pending the withdrawal of international forces.

In mid-2007, international police agency Interpol issued a warrant for her arrest, charging her and her associates with involvement in insurgent activity.

Saddam Hussein (ra) , Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (ra)

lol putting (r.a) after their names like they were some saints , one killed thousand of people including children with chemical weapons (supplied by the kufar you"hate") and the other use to torture prisoners even PREGNANT women. Have some shame man.

[gegiroor]

Here is another proof that ISIS is only one group in all of the Sunni groups operating in Iraq:

More Than ISIS, Iraq’s Sunni Insurgency

JUNE 17, 2014 Hassan Hassan

The story of the ongoing events in Iraq is one of lost opportunities. By December 2013, many Sunni leaders had become tired of the jihadi group the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) actions, in their areas and on the other side of the border in Syria, and publicly supported the federal government’s military campaign against the group’s bases. At that time, the momentum against ISIS offered a renewed opportunity for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to work with these Sunni tribal and religious leaders to combat terrorism.

But instead, Maliki gave a speech in which he portrayed his planned military campaign in Anbar as an ancient war between “the followers of Hussein and the followers of Yazid,” a reference to a 7th century defining Shia battle. The campaign in Anbar has been a disaster, and that failure is directly relevant to today's crisis. The Iraqi forces failed to dislodge the jihadis and, even worse, Maliki took several steps that played into the hands of extremists. He foolishly shut down a popular protest camp in which thousands of Sunni Iraqis rallied for peaceful change for months, arrested powerful Sunni Member of Parliament Ahmed al-Alwani and killed his brother. Baghdad did not only miss a unique opportunity to move beyond the sectarian divide but made the situation in Sunni areas more favorable for jihadis.

Today, the simplistic portrayal by media and world politicians of the rebellion in Iraq risks making a similar mistake. Headlines as well as political statements focused on ISIS as the only force behind the takeover of several Sunni cities north of Baghdad. And although more recent coverage started to acknowledge the presence of other forces, the dynamics in Sunni areas are still far more complex. But regardless of the extent of its role, ISIS is only one faction in the insurgency. There are at least half a dozen groupings that took part in the offensive.

Other than the two jihadi militias ISIS and Ansar al-Islam, insurgents include a coalition of nearly 80 Sunni Arab tribes, known as the Military Council of the Tribes of Iraq. This coalition has strong presence in Sunni areas especially in Fallujah, Ramadi, and in various areas in Nineveh and Salaheddin. According to Arabic news site al-Araby al-Jadid, the coalition is estimated to include about 41 armed groups, among them soldiers and officers from the dismantled Iraqi army of Saddam Hussein.

Then there is the Army of the Men of the Naqshbandi Order, a group allegedly headed by former Iraqi vice president Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri. Formed in 2007, the group consists of thousands of former members of the Baath party, as well Sufi and Muslim Brotherhood-leaning fighters. At least in terms of numbers, the group is a strong rival to ISIS and has strong social roots in the community. In 2009, U.S. officials warned that the order might be more dangerous than al-Qaeda because its members succeeded in establishing deep roots within Sunni Iraqi society.

The Naqshbandis, who operate mostly in Mosul, downplay their Sunni focus and claim to have Kurdish and Shia members. Observers of the group say that it also operates under different names primarily provisional military and tribal councils. But it appears that loyalists to the dismantled Baath Party of Iraq dominate the army as they do in many of the Sunni groupings that emerged in the wake of the protest movement of 2011-2013, such as the General Military Council of the Iraqi Revolutionaries (GMCIR). This tendency of Iraqi Baath loyalists to operate through fronts was confirmed last week by Abu Mariya al-Qahtani, a prominent Iraqi jihadi who now works for Jabhat al-Nusra in Syria, who tweeted: “the Baathists work on all levels and with several faces and forms.” A spokesman of GMCIR told the BBC on Sunday that his group is stronger than ISIS and that they adhere to the principles of Geneva Convention, unlike ISIS, which he described as “barbarian.”

These non-ISIS groups have played a significant role in the fighting; according to local sources they not only took part in the fighting but have been the dominant force in several areas, including Mosul and Kirkuk. According to a report by Saudi Arabia channel Al Arabiya, the Islamic Army, believed to be the largest armed group after ISIS and the military councils, prevented ISIS from entering Dulu'iyya, around 55km(34mi) north of Baghdad after they took control of it, due to ideological divergences. Tribal forces, according to the same report, controlled areas such as Alam, Hajjaj, and Albu Ujail, and in Mosul tribal forces and Naqshbandis controlled areas such as al-Wahda, Sukkar, and Baladiyat.

The involvement of such forces alongside ISIS is the worrying trend, not because they fight side by side with jihadis but because many of those fighters once stood by the federal government against the extremists. This fact alone should help the international community figure out the true causes for today’s crisis. Sunni religious and tribal leaders have shown several times that they were willing to stand by the federal government against extremism: during the “Iraqi Surge” in 2007, before the Anbar campaign in December 2013, and a few times in between.

These forces have little in common with ISIS. Indeed, tensions are already mounting between the two, in media and on the ground. Shortly after the takeover of Mosul last week, ISIS issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the Naqshbandis to remove posters of Saddam Hussein from the streets of Mosul, and then demanded that no other group issue a statement about events on the ground. These tensions reflect profound differences, as ISIS considers Baathists to be kafirs (infidels) while Baathists reject ISIS religious extremism.

Another indication is the fact that Sunni residents fear a government military response more than they fear the militias in their neighborhoods. Residents are already returning to their areas and, according to sources in Mosul, people are expressing a sense of relief for the departure of government forces. A local resident noted that her younger brother said he never saw his city in this light before: “he grew up under sanctions, under occupation and government security [crackdown],” she said. “He refuses to leave now, as the city feels real for him for the first time.”

Recognition of these dynamics, instead of focusing on ISIS, is essential to resolving the crisis. The stakes in Iraq are higher than any time before, and the situation has never more perilous. Between 2005 and 2007, when Iraq faced a civil war and the rise of al-Qaeda elements, the American troops were still in the country and religious leaders from both sides actively called for calm. Today, the country faces similar challenges but without the forces that helped to save Iraq before: Sunni religious leaders are either supporting the rebellion or too discredited to have any influence. Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who played a central role in calming sectarian tensions during the 2005-2007 civil war, has issued a fatwa calling on Iraqis to pick up arms and join the government’s forces in fighting ISIS. Although he intended to speak to all Iraqis regardless of their sect, his fatwa has been seen as a call for arms against Sunnis owing to the deep polarization.

A credible and inclusive political process is the way forward. Sunni Iraqis willing to engage in the political process are still the majority. But, to them, Maliki has shown time and again that he cannot be trusted. In 2010, Washington made the mistake of accepting an Iranian plan to help Maliki assume a second term despite the fact that the Iraqiyya bloc won a majority. In this crisis, there are signs that Washington will make another mistake, by seeking Iran's help in fighting ISIS. But that only adds insult to injury and will deepen Sunnis' sense of estrangement and betrayal.

Hassan Hassan is a research associate with the Delma Institute, a research center in Abu Dhabi. Follow him on Twitter @hhassan140.

Source: http://carnegieendowment.org/sada/2014/ ... gency/hdvi

[gegiroor]

Saddam Hussein (ra) , Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (ra)

lol putting (r.a) after their names like they were some saints , one killed thousand of people including children with chemical weapons (supplied by the kufar you"hate") and the other use to torture prisoners even PREGNANT women. Have some shame man.

Where is the proof that they did it? Saddam Hussein (ra) has denied carrying it out the chemical attacks against Kurds and stated it was Iran who did it when he was on trial. There was no evidence presented to this day, proving that it was Iraq under Saddam carried out that attack.

Cut the nonsense and stop bringing here hearsay that you heard from Western media. There has never been proof that Iraqi forces carried out those attacks, and Saddam himself has denied it.

Izzat Al-Douri tortured pregnant women? I am losing my brain if I continue talking to people like you. He has done more for Iraq, Arab world, and Sunni in general than any of the leaders today. He is a symbol of Sunni resistance in Iraq, and he unified all Sunnis in Iraq under one banner, including Sufis, Muslim Brotherhood, Shafi'is, and Wahabis.

Mind you, I never trust Western media, what they say about Muslim leaders, and sectarian groups. Saddam and Al-Douri has done more for Iraq, Sunnis, and Arabs than all of the Arab leaders we have today combined

The shame here is you with an ignorance combined with it!

ra = May Allah be pleased with him. It is a dua you're making for a deceased person!

[gegiroor]

Grandpa, based on those facts, in Iraq, ISIS is one of the actions. The recent why they receive huge propaganda is they are stupid enough to issue videos containing images of some western journalists wearing an orange jump suit, slaughtered by a knife-wielding 'supposedly' a Muslim guy(s). They provide more ammunition to those who want to interfere in Iraq and in the larger Muslim world. However, other groups in Iraq have realistic goals, and while they are blacklisted and receive the same harsh treatment from those who are at with the Sunnah, these groups still manage to control what they release to the outside world, and also maintain the support of the suffering Sunni population in Iraq.

To those who are at war with the Sunnah, they know their biggest enemies in Iraq and Syria are not ISIS, Al-Nusra, Ahrar Al-Sham, or FSA, but to those whom they have always been at war - the ones they were attacking from 1980s - to the present!

[gegiroor]

Islamic Army of Iraq founder: Isis and Sunni Islamists will march on Baghdad

By Ruth Sherlock, and Carol Malouf in Erbil1:51PM BST 20 Jun 2014

Exclusive: Founder of Islamic Army of Iraq who was once described by the US as a top terrorist target, explains how the fight against 'American or Iranian occupation’ has united Isis and other Sunni Islamists in the Battle for Baghdad

“Maliki must first be deposed,” said Mr Dabash. “Then we demand the fragmentation of Iraq into three autonomous regions, with Sunnis, Shia and Kurds sharing resources equally.”

“And finally we need compensation for the one and half million Iraqis, most of them Sunnis, who have been killed at the hands of the Americans and the Maliki regime.”

Mr Dabash denied that Isis were the drivers of the attacks, instead describing the recent attacks as a sectarian “awakening” of Sunni Iraqis, who he said have suffered a decade of oppression.

[You can watch the video in the following link]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... ghdad.html

[gegiroor]

I am done with thread. However the below quote and link will show you one of the rarely admitted stories that stands out of the war against Iraq and the performance of Sunni guerrillas fighting against the occupation of their country at that time.

Tanks take a beating in Iraq

Posted 3/29/2005 11:07 PM Updated 3/29/2005 11:10 PM

By Steven Komarow, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military's Abrams tank, designed during the Cold War to withstand the fiercest blows from the best Soviet tanks, is getting knocked out at surprising rates by the low-tech bombs and rocket-propelled grenades of Iraqi insurgents.

In the all-out battles of the 1991 Gulf War, only 18 Abrams tanks were lost and no soldiers in them killed. But since the March 2003 invasion of Iraq, with tanks in daily combat against the unexpectedly fierce insurgency, the Army says 80 of the 69-ton behemoths have been damaged so badly they had to be shipped back to the United States. (Related graphic: Upgrading the Abrams tank)

At least five soldiers have been killed inside the tanks when they hit roadside bombs, according to figures from the Army's Armor Center at Fort Knox, Ky. At least 10 more have died while riding partially exposed from open hatches. (Related story: Tanks adapted for urban fights they once avoided)

The casualties are the lowest in any Army vehicles, despite how often the Abrams is targeted — about 70% of the more than 1,100 tanks used in Iraq have been struck by enemy fire, mostly with minor damage.

The Army will not discuss details of how tanks have been damaged by insurgents, lest that give tips to the enemy. "We have been very cautious about giving out information," says Jan Finegan, spokeswoman for Army Materiel Command.

Commanders say the damage is not surprising because the Abrams is used so heavily, and insurgents are determined to destroy it.

"It's a thinking enemy, and they know weak points on the tank, where to hit us," says Col. Russ Gold, who commanded an armored brigade in Iraq and now is chief of staff at the Armor Center.

Because it was designed to fight other tanks, the Abrams' heavy armor is up front. In Iraq's cities, however, insurgents sneak up from behind, fire from rooftops above and set off mines below.

A favorite tactic: detonating a roadside bomb in hopes of blowing the tread off the tank. The insurgents follow with rocket-propelled grenades, mortars and gunfire aimed at the less-armored areas, especially the vulnerable rear engine compartment.

It's "a dirty, close fight," says an article in Armor, the Army's official magazine of tank warfare, by a group of officers led by Maj. Gen. Peter Chiarelli of the 1st Cavalry Division.

"Be wary of eliminating or reducing ... heavy armor" as the Army modernizes, the officers warn, arguing it is crucial against insurgents' "crude but effective weapons."

The Army says most of the "lost" tank hulls can be rebuilt and returned to battle someday. Meanwhile, the Army is upgrading the Abrams, including better protection for the tank's engine compartment.

Source: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/wor ... nk-a_x.htm

P.S. There were no Al-Qaeda nor the ISIS bogeymen fighting that war, and the groups fighting that major conflict at that time were Iraqi Islamic Army, the 1920 Rashidun Brigades, and other mainstream Sunni factions. Make no mistake about it, ISIS is bogeymen used to justify the genocide against Sunnah and at the sametime to hide their legitimate grievances!

[Alpharabius]

Saddam Hussein (ra) , Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (ra)

lol putting (r.a) after their names like they were some saints , one killed thousand of people including children with chemical weapons (supplied by the kufar you"hate") and the other use to torture prisoners even PREGNANT women. Have some shame man.

Where is the proof that they did it? Saddam Hussein (ra) has denied carrying it out the chemical attacks against Kurds and stated it was Iran who did it when he was on trial. There was no evidence presented to this day, proving that it was Iraq under Saddam carried out that attack.

Cut the nonsense and stop bringing here hearsay that you heard from Western media. There has never been proof that Iraqi forces carried out those attacks, and Saddam himself has denied it.

Izzat Al-Douri tortured pregnant women? I am losing my brain if I continue talking to people like you. He has done more for Iraq, Arab world, and Sunni in general than any of the leaders today. He is a symbol of Sunni resistance in Iraq, and he unified all Sunnis in Iraq under one banner, including Sufis, Muslim Brotherhood, Shafi'is, and Wahabis.

Mind you, I never trust Western media, what they say about Muslim leaders, and sectarian groups. Saddam and Al-Douri has done more for Iraq, Sunnis, and Arabs than all of the Arab leaders we have today combined

The shame here is you with an ignorance combined with it!

ra = May Allah be pleased with him. It is a dua you're making for a deceased person!

Horta where do you live ? i don't think you live in the real world , this has never been about Sunni vs Shia , its all about power and who has control over the resources . These people are using the deen for their own gain , sunnis dont give a shit about the deen nor the shias , only mindless idiots like you are fed that bullshit. This current war is not about theological differences but economical ones, you are supporting men who are fighting to fill their pockets not their hearts , and that is truly pathetic for a so called "Muslim".

[gegiroor]

Horta where do you live ? i don't think you live in the real world , this has never been about Sunni vs Shia , its all about power and who has control over the resources . These people are using the deen for their own gain , sunnis dont give a shit about the deen nor the shias , only mindless idiots like you are fed that bullshit. This current war is not about theological differences but economical ones, you are supporting men who are fighting to fill their pockets not their hearts , and that is truly pathetic for a so called "Muslim".

It is about resources and sectarian as well. How do you explain Iran's support to the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan and their support to all Shia groups if it is not sectarian?

What is the war on terror if there is no religious component in it? Is it a coincidence that all of the nations and sabotaged are Sunni led governments?

Dummy, I am losing my braincells with people like you. I will ignore you even if you respond to it. Learn to debate without adding insults in your comments. It shows how empty you're! Bye now

Besides, I was responding to Grandpa, so not sure why you're running in a topic that does not concern nor you understand the context we were discussing.