How US and Iraqi forces reacted to kidnapping

Maj. Gen. William Caldwell:

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Since Friday evening on June 16th, when they turned up duty status unknown, whereabouts unknown, we have conducted extensive operations, and as we have stated before, over 8,000 coalition forces and Iraqi police and army forces involved in this search.

We have lost one coalition force member in that search and 12others wounded. And as you can see, we have killed two anti-Iraqi elements, forces and detained 78.

What's key is we did receive 66 intelligence tips, of which 18were rated as actionable. And we in fact took immediate steps and followed up on those tips.

We continue with an extensive use of all assets, from national assets to internal theater assets, in that quest to find our two missing soldiers, but it doesn't stop there.

I think everybody realizes that today we still have two other service members in addition to those two we just discussed that are listed as missing here in Iraq, and Sergeant Matt Maupin, who's been missing since April of 2004, and Captain Speicher, United States Navy. Both obviously are two that we continue to carry on the status as missing in action. There are also 11 American citizens that today are still listed as missing in action, either DOD contractors, civilian contractors or others, but American citizens that have been reported as missing over the last three years.

A great many coalition security personnel continue to study the different kidnapping techniques that are being utilized by these different anti-Iraqi elements and tactics and techniques that they use as they continue to do this. We are all very much aware of the atrocities that they commit, normally by the foreign fighters and some of the indigenous groups, with their victims that they take into their custody. It pains us to realize what fellow service members may go through and other American citizens. I can just say that our resolve is -- will continue until we find the final disposition and take the appropriate action against those who perpetrated this event.

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The briefing also has extensive details on the al Qaeda leadership targets that were killed or cpatured in the same time frame. That information puts the war in perspective and interrupts the terrorist OODA loop in the current news cycle. I would also like to point out how helpful the Iraqi public was during the search. The 66 tips, 18 of which were actionable shows that many Iraqis have joined the fight against the terroist. While I harp on the tip line a lot, it is because it is one of the most important metrics ofthe war because it tells you whose side the public is on. Since Caldwell has taken over as spokesman for MNFI he has done a good job of getting information out that interrupts the terrorist news cycle. I hope he keeps it up. It should also be noted that the Iraqi who called in the location of the bodies also warned of the booby traps that had been placed in the way of those coming to examine and remove the bodies. The US was able to disarm most of the traps and blow up one of them with no casualties.

I think the fact that these men were killed so quickly also demonstrates the weakness of the enemy. He did not have the luxury of using them in video because the search made it impossible for them to remove the men from the area and they had no sanctuary in the area where they could hide and hold them. It is more evidence that the enemy is losing.