BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- About 26,000 U.S. and Iraqi forces are taking part in an offensive against al Qaeda in Iraq in northern Iraq, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

The operation, Lightning Hammer II, is an extension of an earlier operation in Diyala province.

About 14,000 Iraqi security forces stationed throughout Nineveh province and 12,000 U.S. soldiers are conducting the operation, which started Wednesday evening.

The military said the operation "follows Lightning Hammer I ... to deny al Qaeda safe haven in the provinces" of Salaheddin, Nineveh, Diyala, and Kirkuk.

The military said the original Operation Lightning Hammer -- August 13 to September 1 -- ousted militants from the Diyala River valley, northeast of Baquba, the capital of Diyala province.

"Al Qaeda cells were driven from Baquba in Diyala due to Operation Arrowhead Ripper in June and July and then pursued in the Diyala River valley during Operation Lighting Hammer in August," Maj. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, commander of Task Force Lightning and Multinational Division-North.

Also, a U.S. airstrike on the Washash neighborhood in west Baghdad killed at least 14 Iraqis, an Iraqi Interior Ministry official said Thursday.

The Washash section of the capital is a stronghold of the Mehdi Army militia, which is loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The U.S. airstrike comes at the time al-Sadr has ordered the militants to suspend operations for six months.

The U.S. military confirmed U.S. and Iraqi forces fought militants on the ground and struck targets with what it termed "aerial fire," but made no mention of casualties.

The military said it targeted a Shiite militant cell in Washash that attacked local police, set up illegal checkpoints to kill locals, and killed Sunnis.

Coalition troops killed six suspected insurgents and detained 25 others in raids Thursday in Tarmiya, Samarra, Tikrit, near Baquba, and Kirkuk, the U.S. military said. E-mail to a friend

I'm not much for watching news on a regular basis, no need to when I get most of it here from "yous guys" and then the moveon.org, conspiracy theories and UFO chronicles from the others when they are not banned.

Which reminds me before I forget, someone go down to the cellar and check on "harp" once and a while, he get's lonely down there in the ploitical forum. I threw him a couple bones yesterday, but he still won't jump through the hoop, and for God's sake leave the light on for 'em.

Back to topic; I happened to see "Nightly News" with Katie Couric last night, thorough presentation on the new armor piercing grenades. Showing exactly what the troops are up against. Al Queda not in Iraq, "some claim"? all the footage was taken directly from their website. I guess Al Queda just sends their correspondence crews to Iraq from their Public Affairs division to do the filming.

The story
w/video

Just checked on "Harp" still alive and well. Someone needs to tell him, you guys don't give points on word count.
You know, the way we keep slapping him around, he's starting to remind me of the gimp in pulp fiction.
-Frank