Some 130 killed in operation against alleged al-Qaeda-linked Islamists

ANKARA (AFP) Mar 29, 2003
A total of 130 bodies have been recovered after thousands of Iraqi Kurd fighters, backed by US special forces, swept into northern Iraqi territory held by a hardline Islamist group allegedly linked to al-Qaeda, a senior US official said here Saturday.

The operation, involving some 8,000 peshmerga fighters with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), captured a string of villages held by Ansar al-Islam (Supporters of Islam) between the Kurdish town of Halabja and the Iranian border on Friday.

US and Kurdish fighters also recovered documents following their sweep, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. He gave no other details.

A number of Islamist fighters were said to have fled into the mountains that mark the border with Iran, according to sources in northern Iraq.

Three PUK fighters were reported killed in the attack, according to sources in northern Iraq.

The existence of the group in Iraq was presented as one of several reasons for the US invasion of Iraq. Washington has linked the group to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.

WAR.WIRE