Al-Qaeda Hit Hard in Iraq and Waziristan

Hit 'em hard and hit 'em repeatedly:

BAGHDAD (AP) - U.S. bombers and jet fighters unleashed 40,000 pounds of explosives during a 10-minute airstrike Thursday morning, flattening what the military called al-Qaida in Iraq safe havens on the southern outskirts of the capital.

A military statement said B-1 bombers and F-16 fighters dropped the explosives on 40 targets in Arab Jabour in 10 strikes.

The massive attack was part of Operation Phantom Phoenix, a nationwide campaign launched Tuesday to root out al-Qaida in Iraq fighters.

"Thirty-eight bombs were dropped within the first 10 minutes, with a total tonnage of 40,000 pounds,'' the statement said.

40K lbs. in ten minutes is an impressive number. This is a crucial operation we are in as we have AQI on the run and there ratholes are closing up quickly. We have lost nine soldiers in the last two days (six in a booby-trapped house) so the fighting must be heavy and brutal. The only way to beat the Jihadi's is to use as much force as you can muster and it seems that is exactly what we are doing.

Even though the media essentially stopped reporting events in Iraq because they have been going well doesn't mean the fighting is over. We have to solidify our gains and keep al-Qaeda from re-infiltrating these neighborhoods. Sens. McCain and Lieberman discuss Iraq on this, the first anniversary of Bush's speech about the "surge".

In other War on Terror news; it appears that al-Qaeda has worn out their welcome by murdering local leaders and other tactics:

WANA, Jan 9: Thousands of armed tribesmen of South Waziristan met here on Wednesday, vowing to organise a Lashkar to hunt down Al Qaeda-linked militants blamed for killing nine of their kinsmen.

The tribal jirga in Wana came three days after militants stormed two offices and killed nine tribal elders of a government-sponsored peace committee.

The jirga ordered tribesmen from every household belonging to the Wazir tribe to come to Wana with arms to prepare for action, a local official said.

“One man from each house should come to Wana with a gun at 10am on Thursday to plan our defence and act against those who are responsible for disorder,” tribal chief Malik Ghaffar told the gathering.

Wazir tribe chief Maulvi Nazir, who earned fame after he drove out hundreds of Uzbeks from the region last year in bloody clashes, is expected to address the Lashkar on Thursday.He did not turn up at Wednesday’s meeting but had earlier blamed Baitullah Mehsud, a local Al Qaeda commander and leader of the rival Mehsud tribe, for the killing of the peace committee members.

Here's hoping they are driven out and we get a shot at them in Afghanistan. How vile does al-Qaeda have to be to offend the sensibilities of some of the cruelest people on the planet?