CENTCOM announced minutes ago that one of the men expected to take the place of the now-room temperature Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has also reached thermal equilibrium near Baghdad. The spokesman for the military briefed reporters on the death of Sheikh Mansur, displaying before and after mug shots of the dead terrorist and explained his significance to the insurgent network in Iraq. So far, none of the wire services have picked up the story; I will fill in the details as they become available.

UPDATE: The BBC has an addendum to the story on the discovery of the two bodies that reports up to 15 insurgents killed while hunting a "senior member of al-Qaeda in Iraq," but does not identify Sheikh Mansur despite the specifics in the briefing.

UPDATE II: The Commissar asks if I may have mistranscribed the name from al-Masri or al-Mohajer. I took the name from the placard at the briefing, but it still might be the same person, as terrorists have been known to adopt multiple identities. I'm waiting for better reporting to come from the morning briefing, and find it disappointing that the story has not made its own way onto the wires thus far. Still scanning ...

UPDATE III: CENTCOM now has a release stating that they have detained a senior AQI leader and three of his lieutenants near Baghdad. CENTCOM has not named the terrorists detained as yet.

UPDATE IV: Thanks to CQ reader Brendan F, we see that the BBC has updated their report:

Gen Caldwell said on Tuesday US forces had killed Zarqawi's "right-hand man" in a raid in Yusifiya on Friday, near where the US troops were abducted.

The general said Iraqi Mansur Suleiman al-Mashhadani was "a key leader in al-Qaeda" and could have succeeded Zarqawi.

So now we have mainstream media confirmation on the kill -- and it appears we also have another senior AQI leader detained. It may take some time to get the information clear about the later CENTCOM release.

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry is

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference AQI Top 5 Terrorist Killed (Update: Confirmed, Perhaps Plus Another AQI Leader Captured):

» Another One Bites The Dust from It Shines For All
Via Captain's Quarters: CENTCOM announced minutes ago that one of the men expected to take the place of the now-room temperature Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has also reached thermal equilibrium near Baghdad. The spokesman for the military briefed reporters on... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 9:16 AM

» AQI Top 5 Terrorist Killed from The Politburo Diktat
via Captain’s Quarters CENTCOM announced minutes ago that one of the men expected to take the place of the now-room temperature Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has also reached thermal equilibrium near Baghdad. The spokesman for the military briefed reporte... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 9:34 AM

» Replacement Terror Leader Killed (Already)? from Suitably Flip
Via Captain's Quarters, CENTCOM has reportedly announced that Sheikh Mansur, one of the Zarqawi's successors, has joined his jihadi forebear in pushing up thistles. [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 9:53 AM

» Got Another Terror Big-Wig In Iraq from Say Anything
One of Zarqawi's possible replacements, as a matter of fact: CENTCOM announced minutes ago that one of the men expected to take the place of the now-room temperature Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has also reached thermal equilibrium near Baghdad. The spokesman... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 9:57 AM

» Zarqawi’s Successor Possibly Killed from The Strata-Sphere
Al Qaeda In Iraq was possibly dealt a major blow with the newly minted replacement for Zarqawi now a newly deceased past leader for the movement.  However, the latest news is possibly only a detention of some leaders.  More later in the day.  Hat ti... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 10:10 AM

» al-Zarqawi’s Replacement Takes a Dirt Nap? from Gulf Coast Pundit
Via Captain’s Quarters: CENTCOM announced minutes ago that one of the men expected to take the place of the now-room temperature Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has also reached thermal equilibrium near Baghdad. The spokesman for the military briefed report... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 10:18 AM

» More Evidence We're Losing from Curiouser and Curiouser
Over at Captain's Quarters, the Captain he has a blurb from CENTCOM (Central Command) on a "get" that I saw described on Fox News this morning. Seems that one of the top 5 Al Qaeda terrorists in Iraq was killed... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 10:41 AM

» Links to Terror from The Blorg
Sadly, this is a rather easy list to put together every day. Lots of material. Sweetness & Light: How Haditha Was First Reported By Al Jazeera “Furthermore, the US troops threw their dead bodies onto the street and in the courtyards of the hous... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:16 AM

» Al Qaeda Leader Captured from Liberty and Justice
It is a little bit difficult to see the forest through the trees right now, but it seems that - as Suitably Flip explains - Mansur died in a raid on Friday and the other AQ leader and his minions were captured yesterday. Waiting for more information... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 11:52 AM

» The Geneva Convention doesn’t fit, here from The Anchoress
It is very difficult to read the news of the deaths of our kidnapped soldiers. As a parent, all one can do is weep for the families of these men and pray for them, and pray for the people who boast of their “slaughter” while demanding the... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 12:08 PM

» Abu Hamza al-Muhajer Taking Credit For Murders from Riehl World View
Update: There also appears to be another senior al-Qaeda leder in custody. A U.S airstrike June 16 killed Mansur al-Mashhadani, the top al Qaeda religious leader in Iraq, a U.S. military spokesman said June 20. Al-Mashhdani, who was close to [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 12:23 PM

» Zarqawi’s Right-Hand Man Meets His Boss In Hell from Ninth State
I fully expect the usual hand-wringing and whining from the Murthas and Kerrys and Europeans of the world about vengeance, and that we’re losing the war, and that this won’t make a difference in the long run, and that we’re just R... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 12:47 PM

» Kidnapped Soldiers Found from Flopping Aces
No one, no country, is safe from terrorism. This is a world war and until these countries understand this they will continue to become victims. Interesting that the traitor Murtha is not screaming about “murder” now huh? He was all over t... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 1:08 PM

» Have U.S. Forces Killed Zarqawi’s Right Hand Man? from Stop The ACLU
One thing is for sure, we are making a lot of progress lately. Captain Ed points us to this. Gen Caldwell said on Tuesday US forces had killed Zarqawi’s “right-hand man” in a raid in Yusifiya on Friday, near where the US troops wer... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 2:49 PM

» Revenge from Never Yet Melted
The two US soldiers murdered by barbarians are being avenged. Centcom issued a press release this morning: COALITION FORCES DETAIN SENIOR AL-QAIDA IN IRAQ NETWORK MEMBER BAGHDAD – Coalition forces detained a senior al-Qaida in Iraq network member ... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 6:25 PM

» They're Gonna Need Another Number 2 from A Blog For All
With Zarqawi gone, al Qaeda spent a few days trying to figure out who should replace him. Well, in that time, coalition forces in conjunction with Iraqi forces rolled up hundreds of insurgents and terrorists operating across Iraq including a number o... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 7:04 PM

» Got One from Blue Crab Boulevard
Captain Ed has been following events in Iraq today while I was busy paying respects. It would appear that a big fish just got killed and possibly several others captured. UPDATE IV: Thanks to CQ reader Brendan F, we see that the BBC has updat... [Read More]

Tracked on June 20, 2006 10:01 PM

» US Troops:”We’ve got 2 more!” Dems:”Cut and Run!” from Gop3.com: The Triumvirate
Even as Democrats step their cantankerous calls for a cowardly “cut and run” strategy, it seems United States forces have captured another 2 of the most wanted terrorists in Iraq, including the man that was to take Al-Zaqaria’s place!... [Read More]

Tracked on June 21, 2006 12:32 AM

» Democrat’s Plan for Iraq From John Kerry: Not Found from Gop3.com: The Triumvirate
While perusing a few Democrat blogs in search of their latest scheme to desert the citizens of Iraq in their time of need and give up the War on Terror when we have Al-Qaida on the run (well maybe Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and his immediate replacement Shei... [Read More]

Tracked on June 21, 2006 1:11 AM

» Next? from Hang Right Politics
Captain’s Quarters is reporting that the close aid of Zarqawi who was to take his place in Iraq will be joining him instead. UPDATE IV: Thanks to CQ reader Brendan F, we see that the BBC has updated their report: Gen Caldwell said on Tuesday ... [Read More]

Tracked on June 21, 2006 8:19 AM

» Another one Bites the dust! from Pros and Cons
Great news from Captain’s Quarters, by way of the Truth Laid Bear! CENTCOM announced minutes ago that one of the men expected to take the place of the now-room temperature Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has also reached thermal equilibrium near Baghdad. ... [Read More]

Tracked on June 21, 2006 8:22 AM

» Whatever Happened To Pragmatism? from Hard Starboard
this sort of war, assymmetrical warfare, is even more heavily dependent upon intelligence-gathering than the conventional variety. It requires boots on the ground, and the investment of time - time spent amongst the local populace, winning them over ... [Read More]

Tracked on June 22, 2006 8:54 PM