WASHINGTON, Dec. 9, 2005 – The terrorist known as "the Butcher of Ramadi" was detained today, turned in by local citizens in the provincial capital of Iraq's Anbar province, U.S. military officials in Iraq reported.

Amir Khalaf Fanus -- listed third on a "high-value individuals" list of terrorists wanted by the 28th Infantry Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team -- was wanted for criminal activities including murder and kidnapping. Ramadi citizens brought him to an Iraqi and U.S. forces military base in Ramadi, where he was taken into custody.

Fanus was well known for his crimes against the local populace. He is the highest-ranking al Qaeda in Iraq member to be turned in to Iraqi and U.S. officials by local citizens.

His capture is another indication that the local citizens tire of the terrorists' presence within their community, Multinational Force Iraq officials said, adding that Iraqi and U.S. forces have witnessed increasing signs of citizens fighting the terrorists in Ramadi as the Dec. 15 national elections draw near.

Officials said 1,200 more Iraqi soldiers recently have been posted in Ramadi. About 1,100 Iraqi special police commandos and a mechanized Iraqi army company completed their planned movement into the city. This plan has Iraqi security forces assuming more of the security responsibilities from the U.S. forces, officials said. As in other locations, as security improves, Iraqi police also will be introduced gradually.

War and combat of any kind are bound to change nations and societies. But the Pearl Harbor attack remains notable in the annals of history because it changed the entire world as a result of America’s involvement in World War II (WWII). Not only did thousands of people lose their lives in the attack on Hawai’i, millions more across the Pacific and the globe died, were wounded, or were displaced in the aftermath of WWII.

There are innumerable American families who can recount the impact of WWII and Pearl Harbor on their family history.

“I can’t remember just what I saw first—the bomb as it hit the Arizona, the hangar on Ford Island that was lifted up so high that I could see daylight under it, or the USS Utah that was about 30Þ as it was rolling over… I was in the line of fire.”– Ansil “Sandy” Saunders, Pearl Harbor survivor, USS Raleigh, Arizona Memorial Museum Association founder

“We didn’t know what it was all about. It was just a normal Sunday. Then boom! This crash…and when I looked, my arm was hanging…”
– Ellen Higuchi, civilian Pearl Harbor survivor

The future of mankind depends on learning the lessons of history. With every tragic event, we learn and grow. But learning can only happen if the lessons of history are not forgotten.

So we must memorialize. We must record those lessons. We must share them with others.

We Must Remember.

Quoted from the Pearl Harbor Memorial Website