Sunday Sign of Hope May 27th 2007

Troops rescue 41 Iraqi civilians

From Sydney Morning Herald:

US forces have rescued 41 Iraqi civilians from an al-Qaeda hide-out north-east of Baghdad, including some who showed signs of torture, an official says.

Major General William Caldwell, the top US military spokesman in Baghdad, said the discovery was the largest number of detained Iraqis ever found in a single al-Qaeda hide-out.

Some among the 41 had been held as long as four months, he said.

Details were incomplete, but Caldwell said some of the freed Iraqis were being transported to medical facilities for treatment of their injuries.

There were no indications that Americans had been held at the hide-out, he said.

It was not immediately clear whether any al-Qaeda figures were captured.

US forces previously have found a number of houses used by al-Qaeda for detention, including some where prisoners showed signs of torture.

But the hide-out that was raided in Diyala province was the largest, Caldwell said.Caldwell said a tip to US forces from Iraqis in Diyala led to the rescue operation.

"The people in Diyala are speaking up against al-Qaeda," he said.