Al Qaeda In Iraq Beheads 5 Awakening Members In Diyala

Okay, as most of the regular readers here at Holger Awakens know, I am extremely supportive of all military operations by the U.S. in Iraq - I have been a light carrier for the Surge and for our presence in Iraq until total victory is achieved. But even I have days when my frustration boils over.
My frustration is focused on one thing, on one area: Diyala Province in Northern Iraq. First, here is an excerpt of what happened today:

Suspected Al Qaeda militants have attacked a village in Diyala province north of Baghdad and beheaded five members of a local group fighting the jihadist network, police have said.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Najim al-Sumaidaie said the militants raided the village of Benizad, south of the provincial capital Baquba, and attacked a newly created outpost of a local anti-Al Qaeda 'Awakening' group.
"Five people from the Sahwa (Awakening) group were shot dead and later beheaded by the militants," the police officer said, referring to groups of mostly Sunni Arabs who have allied with the US military to fight Al Qaeda in Iraq.

Okay, back to my frustration - sure, the U.S. troops ran into huge roadblocks in Ramadi and in Fallujah and throughout Anbar province but with a strong will, more offensive troops and a coalition with the Anbar Awakening, those areas are now VACANT of al Qaeda. But, we have had miserable success in Diyala. We tried two major offensives to gut Diyala of al Qaeda but we didn't get that done and with the onset of the Awakenings in the north and east (like the Sahwa who was attacked today) we still have seen Diyala appear time and time again as the most violent area of Iraq.

It's my feeling that we left Diyala too soon to go after Mosul. It's also my view that al Qaeda is still moving back and forth out of Diyala to Mosul. The fact that we are still seeing major car and suicide bombings in Baghdad is testament to the fact that al Qaeda is still in significant force in Diyala.

I hope we find the answer soon...if not, we are going to see the fall of these Awakenings in the north and then we will lose our eyes on the streets and our ears to the ground.

Here's the full story.

Five beheaded in Al Qaeda attack on Iraq village: police

Suspected Al Qaeda militants have attacked a village in Diyala province north of Baghdad and beheaded five members of a local group fighting the jihadist network, police have said.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Najim al-Sumaidaie said the militants raided the village of Benizad, south of the provincial capital Baquba, and attacked a newly created outpost of a local anti-Al Qaeda 'Awakening' group.
"Five people from the Sahwa (Awakening) group were shot dead and later beheaded by the militants," the police officer said, referring to groups of mostly Sunni Arabs who have allied with the US military to fight Al Qaeda in Iraq.
One of the members of the group who survived the attack with injuries said they had established the outpost.
"We set up the outpost with the help of Iraqi army soldiers who later left us to man the post. However, this afternoon we were attacked," he said from his bed in a hospital in Baquba where he is being treated for his wounds.
"Five of our number were killed after we ran short of ammunition. Another 10 of us escaped. We later alerted the army, who went to the village and found that the five men who were shot dead had been beheaded. Their bodies were mutilated."
Diyala is one of the most dangerous regions of Iraq where US and Iraqi troops are fighting Al Qaeda militants.
The Awakening groups began in western Anbar province where Sunni tribal leaders in September 2006 turned on their former Al Qaeda allies and put them to flight.
Since then, they have sprung up across the country, supported and paid for by the US military, which sees them as essential to help hold areas cleared by an American "surge" of some 30,000 troops.