5 minutes ago
BAGHDAD - U.S. and Iraqi forces launched a major operation Tuesday to strike against al-Qaida in Iraq and other extremists, a top U.S. commander in Iraq said in a statement.
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The location for the division and brigade-level operation, dubbed Phantom Phoenix, was not announced. But extremists have been pushed out of their former stronghold in Anbar province west of Baghdad to the east and north and appear to be concentrated in the province of Diyala to the northeast of the capital.
"Phantom Phoenix will synchronize lethal and non-lethal effects to exploit recent security gains and disrupt terrorist support zones and enemy command and control," the statement from Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno said.
Odierno, the No. 2 commander in Iraq, said U.S. and Iraqi forces would "continue to pursue al-Qaeda and other extremists wherever they attempt to take sanctuary."
Few details were given, but the "non-lethal" part of the operation will focus on providing basic services and improving local governance and economic life, the statement said.
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