“BAGHDAD — American troops acting on a tip killed the No. 2 leader of al-Qaida in Iraq — a Moroccan known for his ability to recruit and motivate foreign fighters — in a raid in the northern city of Mosul, the U.S. military said Wednesday.” (For this AP report, go here.)

As General Lefebvre said — you can meet him in the final installment of my recent Iraq journal, here — “We’re rollin’ ’em up, and our stance is offensive.” Of course, there will be a new No. 2, and a No. 2 after him. Maybe several more. But, if we continue to apply pressure — continue to fight — terrorists will tire. They’ll begin to feel defeated. And eventually they will be defeated.

But we have to keep going. That’s what counterinsurgency is — and our people are performing it well.