Good news from the Diyala province in Iraq, where reports that local tribespeople are turning against the terrorists seem to be true: U.S. frees 42 al-Qaida captives in raid.

BAGHDAD - U.S. forces raided an al-Qaida hide-out northeast of Baghdad on Sunday and freed 42 Iraqis imprisoned inside, including some who had been tortured and suffered broken bones, a senior U.S. military official said Sunday.

The raid was part of a 3-month-old security crackdown that included the deployment of 3,000 more U.S. troops to Diyala, a violent province north of the capital that has seen heavy fighting in recent weeks, said Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, the top U.S. military spokesman in Iraq.

Caldwell said Iraqis told U.S. forces about the hide-out: “The people in Diyala are speaking up against al-Qaida.” Caldwell said the 42 freed Iraqis marked the largest number of captives ever found in a single al-Qaida prison.

Some of the freed Iraqis had been held for as long as four months and some had injuries from torture and were being taken to medical facilities for treatment, he said.

More details on the “Diyala awakening” at Hot Air and The Fourth Rail.