BAGHDAD Coalition forces killed eight terrorists and detained 14 suspected terrorists during coordinated operations targeting a senior al-Qaeda leader west of Tarmiyah over the past two days.

Forces conducted an operation yesterday targeting the al-Qaeda emir of the northern belts around Baghdad, who is associated with deadly car bomb attacks in the city.

Surveillance indicated the senior leader and his associates had entered a building in a remote area. Coalition forces declared the target hostile and called in an air strike. Secondary explosions ignited after the initial strike, indicating there were explosives inside. Forces assess five terrorists were killed in the strike.

When ground forces approached the site to assess damage, a terrorist engaged them with small-arms fire. Countering in self-defense, forces returned fire and killed the armed man. The ground forces resumed their approach to the building but discovered multiple fighting positions, heavy machine guns, booby traps and vehicles wired with explosives. Coalition forces evacuated the area and called in air assets to destroy the enemy weapons.

Acting on intelligence gained from yesterday's operation, Coalition forces conducted additional coordinated raids in the area this morning. During the first of those, forces used explosives to breach a door and enter a targeted building. A woman standing behind the door was killed in the explosion. Iraqis on the scene told Coalition forces her husband had told her to block the door from the Americans.

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