THE
PRESIDENT: Good morning. Last night in Iraq, United States military
forces killed the terrorist al Zarqawi. At 6:15 p.m. Baghdad time,
special operation forces, acting on tips and intelligence from Iraqis,
confirmed Zarqawi's location, and delivered justice to the most wanted
terrorist in Iraq.
Zarqawi was the operational commander of the terrorist movement in
Iraq. He led a campaign of car bombings, assassinations and suicide
attacks that has taken the lives of many American forces and thousands
of innocent Iraqis. Osama bin Laden called this Jordanian terrorist "the
prince of al Qaeda in Iraq." He called on the terrorists around the
world to listen to him and obey him. Zarqawi personally beheaded
American hostages and other civilians in Iraq. He masterminded the
destruction of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad. He was
responsible for the assassination of an American diplomat in Jordan, and
the bombing of a hotel in Amman.
Through his every action, he sought to defeat America and our
coalition partners, and turn Iraq into a safe haven from which al Qaeda
could wage its war on free nations. To achieve these ends, he worked to
divide Iraqis and incite civil war. And only last week he released an
audio tape attacking Iraq's elected leaders, and denouncing those
advocating the end of sectarianism.
Now Zarqawi has met his end, and this violent man will never murder
again. Iraqis can be justly proud of their new government and its early
steps to improve their security. And Americans can be enormously proud
of the men and women of our armed forces, who worked tirelessly with
their Iraqi counterparts to track down this brutal terrorist and put him
out of business.
The operation against Zarqawi was conducted with courage and
professionalism by the finest military in the world. Coalition and Iraqi
forces persevered through years of near misses and false leads, and they
never gave up. Last night their persistence and determination were
rewarded. On behalf of all Americans, I congratulate our troops on this
remarkable achievement.
Zarqawi is dead, but the difficult and necessary mission in Iraq
continues. We can expect the terrorists and insurgents to carry on
without him. We can expect the sectarian violence to continue. Yet the
ideology of terror has lost one of its most visible and aggressive
leaders.
Zarqawi's death is a severe blow to al Qaeda. It's a victory in the
global war on terror, and it is an opportunity for Iraq's new government
to turn the tide of this struggle. A few minutes ago I spoke to Prime
Minister Maliki. I congratulated him on close collaboration between
coalition and Iraqi forces that helped make this day possible. Iraq's
freely elected Prime Minister is determined to defeat our common enemies
and bring security and the rule of law to all its people.
Earlier this morning he announced the completion of his cabinet
appointments, with the naming of a new Minister of Defense, a new
Minister of the Interior, and a new Minister of State for National
Security. These new ministers are part of a democratic government that
represents all Iraqis. They will play a vital role as the Iraqi
government addresses its top priorities -- reconciliation and
reconstruction and putting an end to the kidnappings and beheadings and
suicide bombings that plague the Iraqi people. I assured Prime Minister
Maliki that he will have the full support of the United States of
America.
On Monday I will meet with my national security team and other key
members of my Cabinet at Camp David to discuss the way forward in Iraq.
Our top diplomats and military commanders in Iraq will give me an
assessment of recent changes in the political and economic and security
situation on the ground. On Tuesday, Iraq's new Ambassador to the United
States will join us, and we will have a teleconference discussion with
the Prime Minister and members of his cabinet. Together we will discuss
how to best deploy America's resources in Iraq and achieve our shared
goal of an Iraq that can govern itself, defend itself and sustain
itself.
We have tough days ahead of us in Iraq that will require the
continued patience of the American people. Yet the developments of the
last 24 hours give us renewed confidence in the final outcome of this
struggle: the defeat of terrorism threats, and a more peaceful world for
our children and grandchildren.
May God bless the Iraqi people and may God continue to bless America.