Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the most recognizable face of Iraq's violent insurgency, died in a coalition airstrike near Baquba, jubilant U.S. and Iraqi authorities said today. U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad called al-Zarqawi "the godfather of sectarian killing and terror in Iraq" and said his death "marks a great success for Iraq and the global war on terror."
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'Painstaking' operation led to al-Zarqawi
One tip came from al-Zarqawi's own terror network, military says
Thursday, June 8, 2006; Posted: 7:35 p.m. EDT (23:35 GMT)
Iraq
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Betrayal inside his al Qaeda in Iraq terror group led to success in a painstaking U.S.-led operation to kill Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the U.S. military said on Thursday.
The most wanted man in Iraq died in a U.S. airstrike Wednesday evening when two 500-pound bombs slammed into a safe house near Baquba, according to U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Bill Caldwell.
"Last night was the first time that we have had definitive, unquestionable information as to exactly where [al-Zarqawi] was located, knowing that we could strike that target without causing collateral damage to other Iraqi civilians and personnel in the area," Caldwell said.
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http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/...awi/index.html