Many of the deaths in Iraq are the result of terrorists using improvised explosive devices, or I-E-D's. Often these I-E-D's are made from artillery shells, explosives, and other munitions fitted with timing devices.
President George W. Bush says that terrorists know they cannot win militarily in Iraq "so they've turned to these weapons of fear":
"The principal victims of I-E-D attacks are innocent Iraqis. The terrorists and insurgents have used I-E-D's to kill Iraqi children playing in the streets, shoppers at Iraqi malls, and Iraqis lining up at police and army recruiting stations. They use I-E-D's to strike terror in the hearts of the Iraqis, in an attempt to break their confidence in the free future of their country."
Because the Iraqi people are "primarily the targets of the bombers, Iraqis are increasingly providing critical intelligence":
"Acting on tips provided by local citizens, coalition forces uncovered a massive I-E-D arsenal hidden in a location northwest of Baghdad. They found and confiscated more than three-thousand pieces of munitions – in one of the largest weapons caches discovered in that region to date."
Mr. Bush says that some of the most powerful I-E-D's found in Iraq "include components that came from Iran":
"Such actions – along with Iran's support for terrorism and its pursuit of nuclear weapons – are increasingly isolating Iran, and America will continue to rally the world to confront those threats."
President Bush says that "More work needs to be done. Yet by targeting the bomb-makers, and training our forces, and deploying new technologies," he says, "the coalition "will stay ahead of the enemy, and that will save. . . .lives.
The preceding was an editorial reflecting the views of the United States Government.
