Syria accused the United States on Monday of committing an 'outrageous crime' in killing eight civilians during a helicopter attack on a Syrian farm near the border with Iraq. (Graphics/Reuters)CIA Led Mystery Syria Raid That Killed
Terrorist Leader -- McClatchy Washington
Terrorist Leader -- McClatchy Washington
WASHINGTON — A CIA-led raid on a compound in eastern Syria killed an al Qaida in Iraq commander who oversaw the smuggling into Iraq of foreign fighters whose attacks claimed thousands of Iraqi and American lives, three U.S. officials said Monday.
The body of Badran Turki Hishan al Mazidih, an Iraqi national who used the nom de guerre Abu Ghadiya, was flown out of Syria on a U.S. helicopter at the end of the operation Sunday by CIA paramilitary officers and special forces, one U.S. official said.
"It was a successful operation," a second U.S. official told McClatchy. "The bottom line: This was a significant blow to the foreign fighter pipeline between Syria and Iraq."
A senior U.S. military officer said the raid was launched after human and technical intelligence confirmed that al Mazidih was present at the compound close to Syria's border with Iraq. "The situation finally presented itself," he said.
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My Comment: CIA led, Special Forces led, Army led, Marine led, Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader led .... I do not care .... he is dead .... that is what counts.