Zarqawi Killed

U.S. Gen. George W. Casey Jr. on Thursday announced the death of Al-Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and one of his key lieutenants, spiritual advisor Sheik Abd al-Rahman, in an air strike against a safe house on Wednesday. Coalition forces were able to identify Zarqawi by fingerprint verification, facial recognition, and known scars. "He is known to be responsible for the deaths of thousands of Iraqis. Zarqawi's death is a significant blow to al-Qaeda," said Gen. Casey.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Zarqawi was killed along with seven aides in a house 30 miles northeast of Baghdad. Al-Maliki said the air strike was the result of intelligence reports provided to Iraqi security forces by residents in the area. U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad called the death of Zarqawi "a huge success for Iraq and the international war on terror." The Jordanian-born militant is believed to have personally beheaded at least two American hostages. In the past year, he moved his campaign beyond Iraq's borders, claiming to have carried out a Nov. 9, 2005, triple suicide bombing against hotels in Amman, Jordan, that killed 60 people, and even a rocket attack from Lebanon into northern Israel.