Juba (sniper)

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Juba (جوبا) is the nom de guerre of an alleged sniper involved in the Iraqi insurgency featured in several propaganda videos. In the most recent, he claims to have shot 37 American soldiers ^[1]. Whether Juba is a real individual is unknown, but the sheer number of attacks claimed and the arrest or capture of at least two people claimed to be Juba suggests he may be a fictional composite of several insurgents. It is believed "juba" is merely a name insurgent snipers take when they make propoganda films, so as to show an air of invincibility towards their enemy.

1 Videos
- 1.1 First video
- 1.2 Second video
2 Rumors of capture
3 Blogs
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Videos

Several video clips which show the actions of Juba have been circulated through the Internet.

[edit] First video

In November 2005, a video which was circulating in Iraq appeared on the Internet. [1] The video, attributed to the Islamic Army in Iraq, showed United States soldiers falling to the ground, allegedly due to attacks by Juba.

Also circulating was a video clip showing nine shootings of men appearing to be US soldiers. The video starts with a character saying, "I have nine bullets in this gun and I have a present for George Bush. I am going to kill nine people. I am doing this for the viewers to watch. God is great. God is great." With that, he makes his way from the vehicle, and a series of separate scenes begin, showing several individuals shot in action.

[edit] Second video

A second "Juba" video was distributed in 2006 in western Baghdad and released on the Internet in late October 2006. The video contained an interview with the supposed commander of the Baghdad sniper division, footage shows numerous fighters being trained in the use of sniper rifles. The video discusses the alleged fear generated in coalition forces by insurgency snipers, and shows "Juba" returning from a sniping mission, marking a tally of 37 on a wall. The sniper then sits down to make a diary entry. The video claims that there are dozens of snipers operating within the Islamic Army of Iraq and other factions, and shows more being trained. The rest of the video shows numerous clips of US soldiers allegedly being sniped with nasheed music in the background, and the 'Baghdad sniper commander' explaining that his men are inspired and trained to an extent based on the information in the book The Ultimate Sniper by retired Major and US Army sniper John Plaster.

[edit] Rumors of capture

It has been rumored that "Juba" may have been captured on June 2, 2005. An Iraqi sniper, in a van at a distance of 75-100 metres away from American soldier Stephen Tschiderer, shot at him using a rifle with a telescopic sight. Tschiderer was hit, but his injuries were minimal due to his body armor ^[2] Soldiers from the B Company, 4th Battalion, 1st Iraqi Army Brigade unit began searching for the insurgents (allegedly the sniper and the driver who videotapes the attacks). [2] [3]

The army located the van and discovered a cushioned sniping nest. This nest was lined with numerous bed mattresses to muffle the sound of a Dragunov sniper rifle [4], which was used to fire through a hole just big enough for the shooter to engage his target of choice. The driver of the van was detained and the wounded shooter was captured after a short pursuit by Tschiderer and B Company.

On November 29, 2006, a man named Ali Nazar Al-Jubori (or Mazar Jubouri) was arrested by the Iraqi interior ministry and declared to be "the sniper of Baghdad". [5][6]

[edit] Blogs

Many websites and blogs from different countries talk about "Juba the Sniper", providing stories, pictures and movie clips which feature soldiers Juba has supposedly sniped. There is no evidence that any of these websites have any link to Juba, though some of them claim to have been written by Juba himself.