Targeting the Diyala Suicide Bombing Network

Coalition operations have significantly degraded the Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) network in the last year, particularly in centralIraq.  One of the main successes was the dismantling of AQI’s vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) network.  As the VBIED network was rolled up, AQI shifted to conducting more suicide bombings.  A major component of the suicide bombing network was located in the Baqubah-Khan Bani Saad corridor in Diyala province.  In January and February 2008, Coalition and Iraqi forces set about defeating this network.  This backgrounder details AQI’s shift to suicide bombings and the operations to dismantle the Diyala suicide bombing network and draws conclusions about AQI's method of operation throughoutIraq, the capabilities of the Iraqi army, and the relationship between kinetic and non-kinetic aspects of counterinsurgency.