Main security developments in Iraq on Tuesday December 26th 2006 : Aswat al Iraq

Security developments in Iraq December 26th 2006 Update Voices of Iraq: Iraq-Security (Highlights) 2 Iraq-Security (Highlights) 2 Baghdad, Dec 26, (VOI) – Main security developments in Iraq on Tuesday: Baghdad – An explosive-rigged car went off in a popular market in the Sunni-majority northern Baghdad district of al-Aazamiya, killing 20 people and wounding 35 others, a security source said. Earlier in the day, 15 people were killed and 70 others wounded in a wave of car bombings in al-Baiyaa district in southwestern Baghdad. Falluja – An Iraqi army base in the restive town of Falluja came under an armed attack, but the damage was not immediately known, a police source said. Baghdad – Gunmen shot dead two brothers as they were shopping in a popular market in southwestern Baghdad district of Sidiya, a security source said. Mosul – A civilian was killed in a drive-by shooting attack in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul while four people were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded in the city, Iraqi police sources said. Baiji – A car bomb exploded near Tamim police station in Baiji, Salah Eddin province, wounding five people and causing heavy material damage, a source in Salah Eddin police operations room said. URI Main security developments in Iraq on Tuesday December 26th 2006 : Aswat al Iraq: Baaquba: Seven unidentified corpses were received on Tuesday by the Diala health department's forensic medicine section, a medical source said. Baghdad: A Senior Iraqi police officer was killed and nine people were wounded on Tuesday morning when three explosive charges went off in succession near a major Sunni mosque in downtown Baghdad, a police source said. Baghdad: Fifteen people were killed and 70 others wounded in a chain of successive blasts in al-Baiyaa district in southwest of Baghdad, on Tuesday, Iraqi interior ministry sources said. Baghdad: The U.S. army said on Tuesday three U.S. soldiers were killed and three others wounded in two separate incidents in southwest Baghdad. Baghdad: Unidentified gunmen kidnapped on Tuesday a senior Iraqi trade ministry official in an ambush in western Baghdad, Iraqi interior ministry sources said. Kirkuk: A child was killed and five others wounded in Kirkuk on Tuesday when an explosive device went off near a primary school in north of the city, a security source said. Kirkuk: Two Iraqi policemen were wounded on Tuesday when their patrol vehicle came under attack with small:arms fire in southern Kirkuk, a police source said. Missan: A senior police officer was killed on Tuesday morning when masked gunmen attacked him while driving his car in central Ammara city, 380 km southeast of Baghdad, a security source said. Missan:Unknown gunmen shot dead on Tuesday morning a local leader of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al:Sadr’s Mahdi army in Ammara, capital city of southern Iraqi province of Missan. URL: 85 killed or injured in al-Baiyaa blasts, another kills five in Baghdad (Update) : Aswat al Iraq: Baghdad, Dec 26, (VOI) – Fifteen people were killed and 70 others wounded in a chain of successive blasts in al-Baiyaa district in southwest of Baghdad, on Tuesday, Iraqi interior ministry sources said. TV images shot by a local cameraman showed the powerful explosions that left in its wake a huge blaze devouring a number of civilian vehicles that parked at the scene then. A man who was evacuating a number of charred bodies from the scene said "three car bombs blew up here with only a few minutes apart." Meanwhile, Iraq's interior ministry sources said another explosive charge bombing took place in the usually shopper-thronged al-Bab al-Sharqi area in central Baghdad, killing five and wounding 15 others. Bab al-Sheikh, near al-Bab al-Sharqi, witnessed on Tuesday morning three explosive charge bombings, killing a police lt. colonel and injuring nine others, including a number of policemen. The blasts took place near the mosque and tomb of Sheikh Abdul-Qadir Guilani, said the sources. URL. See immediately below for original report. Baghdad-Blasts : Senior police officer killed in Baghdad blast Aswat al Iraq: Baghdad, Dec 26, (VOI) – A Senior Iraqi police officer was killed and nine people wounded on Tuesday morning when three explosive charges went off in succession near a major Sunni mosque in downtown Baghdad, a police source said. “Three explosive charges went off in succession near sheikh Abdul-Qadir al-Guilani mosque in downtown Baghdad today morning killing a police lieutenant colonel and wounding nine people, including policemen,” the source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). The third explosive device went off while policemen and civilians were helping take to a nearby hospital the wounded from the explosion of a double charge in the location, the source added. URL Iranian diplomats detained in al-Hakim's guesthouse : Aswat al Iraq: Iranian diplomats detained in al-Hakim's guesthouse – legislator By Kawther Abdul-Amir Baghdad, Dec 26, (VOI) – The Iranian diplomats arrested by the U.S. forces were detained inside the guesthouse of Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of the Shiite Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), an Iraqi legislator said. "The diplomats had come to Iraq upon an official invitation from President Jalal Talabani, and accordingly their arrest represents a violation of Iraqi sovereignty," Mahmoud Othman, a member of the Iraqi parliament for the Kurdistan Coalition, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). The New York Times newspaper had reported on Monday that the U.S. army arrested a number of Iranian diplomats for their suspected involvement in operations targeting Iraqi forces last week. Diplomats working in the Iranian embassy in Baghdad were released but a number others who were invited by the Iraqi president are still remanded in custody. The U.S. State Department, in a statement on Monday, said the U.S. forces in Iraq detained a number of Iranians, including two diplomats who were released over their diplomatic immunity. Iraq's National Security Advisor Muwafaq al-Rubai’i was supposed to hold a press conference on this issue on Tuesday but he postponed it till Wednesday due to developments, a source close to Rubaie said. URL Detained Reuters correspondent in Ramadi released : Aswat al Iraq: Ramadi, Dec 26, (VOI) – U.S. forces released Ramadi-based-Reuters correspondent Ammar al-Dulaimi after one week of detention in the restive Anbar’s city of Ramadi, a security source said. “Reuters correspondent Ammar al-Dulaimi was released last night after the U.S. forces detained him at his house in Ramadi one week ago,” the source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). Ammar al-Dulaimi was arrested on December 19 from his house at Albo Alwan village in Ramadi, 110 km west of Baghdad. URL Wassit: Unknown bodies buried in Wassit reach 177 : Aswat al Iraq: Unknown bodies buried in Wassit reach 177 By Abdul-Jabbar al-Sufrani Wassit, Dec 26, (VOI) – The number of unidentified bodies buried in a mass grave in the province of Wassit reached 177 since August, a source in Wassit on Tuesday. "Seven unidentified bodies found in different areas in the province were buried on Monday," Maamoun Ojail, the official in charge of the forensic medicine unit in al-Zaharaa public hospital, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). The number of unidentified corpses buried since last August reached 177, he said, adding a committee was set up to write down the available information on a tag attached to each corpse to make it easier for relatives to identify the bodies. The majority of corpses are for men wearing civilian clothes. Their bodies were retrieved from the rivers Tigris and Malih in northern Suwayra. Kut, the main city in the province of Wassit, is 180 km southeast of the capital Baghdad. URL Diyala: Seven bodies found in Diala: Aswat al Iraq: Seven bodies found in Diala By Asim Taha Baaquba, Dec 26, (VOI) – Seven unidentified corpses were received on Tuesday by the Diala health department's forensic medicine section, a medical source said. "The forensics in the Baaquba public hospital received seven bodies from different areas in the province of Diala (57 km north of the capital Baghdad)," a source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI) on condition of anonymity. "Some of the bodies bore marks of torture and others were blindfolded and hand-tied and had bullet holes," the source added. URL: Senior Iraqi trade ministry official kidnapped in western Baghdad : Aswat al Iraq: Senior Iraqi trade ministry official kidnapped in western Baghdad By Wathiq Ismael Baghdad, Dec 26, (VOI) – Unidentified gunmen kidnapped on Tuesday a senior Iraqi trade ministry official in an ambush, Iraqi interior ministry sources said. "Unknown armed men boarding two vehicles intercepted Muhannad Ahmed Saleh, the director of the Baghdad International Fair, when he was driving from home to work in the western Baghdad district of al-Amiriya," an interior ministry source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). Saleh, who was alone in his car, was led to an unknown place, the source added. Al-Amiriya, of a Sunni majority, is witnessing non-stop armed operations nearly on a daily basis. An offshoot of Iraq's trade ministry, the Baghdad International Fair used to be concerned with the inviting a large number of Iraqi, Arab and foreign companies to participate regularly in the annual 15-day exhibit. The fair held earlier this month a round attended only by Iraqi companies, and was the first of its kind since the outbreak of the U.S.-led war on Iraq in March 2003. URL: Baghdad: Car bombing in Baghdad Sunni district leaves 20 dead, 35 wounded : Aswat al Iraq: Car bombing in Baghdad Sunni district leaves 20 dead, 35 wounded By Wathiq Ismael Baghdad, Dec 26, (VOI) – An explosive-rigged car went off on Tuesday in a popular market in the Sunni-majority northern Baghdad district of al-Aazamiya, killing 20 people and wounding 35 others, a security source said. The car bomb “was left near the popular market facing Imam Abu Hanifa al-Nouman mosque in al-Aazamiya and it exploded as worshippers were leaving the mosque after Maghreb (sunset) prayers,” the source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). “The blast killed 20 civilians and wounded 35 others, mostly worshippers. Also four cars parked nearby were damaged while the shrine did not sustain any damage,” he added. Security forces cordoned off the area as ambulances rushed the wounded to al-Nouman hospital. The blast occurred about two hours after the court of appeals upheld the death sentence against former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and two former aides for committing crimes against humanity in the Dujail case. Earlier in the day, 15 people were killed and 70 others wounded in a cluster of car bombings in al-Baiyaa district in southwestern Baghdad. The URL for this story: Western Agency Reports AP: Bombings kill 54 Iraqis; 7 Americans die on Yahoo! News: By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA, Associated Press Writer 39 minutes ago At least 54 Iraqis died Tuesday in bombings, officials said, including a coordinated strike that killed 25 in western Baghdad. Separately, the U.S. military announced the deaths of seven American soldiers, raising the death toll significantly in one of the bloodiest months for the military this year. The three coordinated car bombs in western Baghdad injured at least 55 people, a doctor at Yarmouk hospital, where the victims were taken, said on condition of anonymity because of safety concerns. The attacks occurred in a mixed Sunni and Shiite neighborhood. In other attacks, a car bomb exploded near a Sunni mosque in northern Baghdad at the beginning of the evening rush hour, killing 17 people and wounding 35, a doctor at Al-Nuaman hospital said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. A bomb also exploded in a central Baghdad market, killing four people and wounding 15, police said. Two roadside bombs targeted an Iraqi police patrol in an eastern neighborhood of the capital, killing four policemen and injuring 12 people. In Kirkuk, 180 miles north of the Iraqi capital, a roadside bomb killed three civilians — including an 8-year-old girl — and wounded six other people, police said. [snip] American troops fought gunmen in a Shiite militia stronghold in east Baghdad on Tuesday, witnesses said. Fighters loyal to the anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr engaged in the clashes with U.S. forces in and near Sadr City, an official in al-Sadr's office said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. There was no immediate word on casualties. British soldiers were on alert for reprisals a day after they raided a police station in the southern city of Basra, killing seven gunmen in an effort to stop renegade Iraqi officers from executing their prisoners. [snip] A spokesman for Iraq's defense minister said Monday that the Iraqi Interior and Defense ministries approved the Basra operation, but some members of the Basra provincial council said they were not notified. "We object to the way the operation was conducted," council member Hakim al-Maiyahi told The Associated Press. "There was no need to bring in such a huge number of forces and break down the station." [snip] Elsewhere, Jordanian Prime Minister Marouf al-Bakhit said Tuesday that a former Iraqi Cabinet minister who escaped from a Baghdad prison this month had arrived in Jordan on a U.S. plane. Ayham al-Samaraie, a former minister of electricity with dual U.S. and Iraqi citizenship, had been serving time for corruption when he escaped mid-December. Lou Fintor, spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, said the U.S. government was not involved in al-Samaraie's escape "in any way." He denied in "unequivocal terms" the claim that al-Samaraie flew out of Iraq on an American plane. Reuters AlertNet - FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, Dec 26: Following are security developments in Iraq as of 1700 GMT on Tuesday: * denotes a new or updated item. * BAGHDAD - A car bomb in the mainly Sunni Arab district of Adhamiya in Baghdad killed 15 people and wounded 30, hospital sources said. * BAGHDAD - One U.S. soldier was killed and two injured when their vehicle rolled over during a combat mission south of Baghdad on Tuesday, the U.S. military said. BAGHDAD - Three simultaneous car bombs exploded in southwestern Baghdad, killing 16 people and wounding 70, Interior Ministry and police sources said. BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb killed five people and wounded 15 others in a crowded area in central Baghdad, police said. BAGHDAD - Three U.S. soldiers looking for roadside bombs were killed northwest of Baghdad, the U.S. military said. One soldier was wounded. BAGHDAD - Two U.S. soldiers were killed and one wounded in a roadside bomb attack southwest of Baghdad on Monday, the military said. Another roadside bomb in the same area killed one U.S. soldier and wounded two on Monday. BAGHDAD - Three roadside bombs in quick succession killed a police lieutenant colonel and wounded nine people in central Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said. BAGHDAD - A total of 40 bodies were found, shot dead and most of them showing signs of torture, on Monday in different districts of Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said. BAGHDAD - Gunmen kidnapped Muhanad Ahmed Saleh, director of the Baghdad International Fair, on his way to work in Amiriya district in western Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said. BAGHDAD - U.S. forces captured a suspected leader of a murder and kidnapping cell along with four suspected insurgents near Baghdad, the U.S. military said. BAGHDAD - A mortar round killed two people on Monday in northern Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said. BAGHDAD - A bodyguard of Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi was killed by a "foreigner assailant" on Sunday near the office of Abdul Mahdi in Baghdad, the vice president's office said. BAIJI - A car bomb near a police station wounded a policeman and four civilians in the oil refining city of Baiji, 180 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, police said. NEAR KIRKUK - Gunmen wounded two policemen in a drive-by shooting in a town near Kirkuk, police said. BAQUBA - The bodies of six people, gagged and bound, were found in two districts in Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad, a hospital source said. KIRKUK - A roadside bomb killed a child and an elderly man and wounded three university students in the northern oil city of Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, police said. RIYADH - Police found the body of a policeman, shot dead and tortured, on Monday in the town of Riyadh, 70 km ( 40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, police said. BASRA - Gunmen kidnapped a bank manager and two employees and stole $750,000 on Monday in the southern city of Basra, police said. MOSUL - The bodies of a soldier and a civilian were found shot dead on Monday in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said. OTHER DEVELOPMENTS: * BAGHDAD - An Iraqi appeals court upheld Saddam Hussein's death sentence for crimes against humanity and said he should hang within 30 days. Saddam, 69, was sentenced to death on Nov. 5 for crimes against humanity over the killings of 148 Shi'ites from the town of Dujail after he escaped assassination there in 1982. This posting has been crossposted markfromireland