|
90 dead in Iraq violence
At least 90 people, including Iraqi soldiers, police and two alleged Al-Qaeda leaders, were killed in fresh violence across the war-ravaged Iraq on Thursday.A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest blew himself up in a crowded Baghdad restaurant frequented by security forces during breakfast on Thursday, killing at least 42 people and wounding at least 25 more, police said. âBody parts are all over the place, we are still collecting them,â a police officer at the scene said. It was one of the biggest attacks in the Iraqi capital in recent months and came the day after three hotel bombs in the Jordanian capital Amman killed 57 people in an apparently coordinated attack claimed by Al Qaeda in Iraq. The security forces protecting the US-backed, Shia-led government have been frequent targets of Sunni Arab rebels and Islamist Al Qaeda groups led by Jordanian Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi. The police officer said at least four Iraqi police patrols were having their breakfast at the restaurant when the bomber struck. A police explosives expert on the scene said that the bomber was also carrying a bag full of explosives. âA suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest went into a restaurant,â another police official said shortly after the loud blast which could be heard from several kilometres away, rocking the city shortly after 9.30am. The official said the restaurant, which was crowded with diners, was known to be frequented by soldiers and police. One witness, Kadhem Mohammed, said two Iraqi army cars had arrived at the restaurant around 15 minutes before the blast. âIt targeted the Iraqi army, police and civilians because the restaurant was full of people,â he said. A police officer who identified himself only as Ahmed said: âWe were on patrol. We heard the blast and I was the first one to arrive on the scene. There were 32 dead and some of the wounded died while we were taking them to hospital.â Suicide attacks, roadside bombs and gunmen kill dozens of people every day â some in targeted attacks on government officials or other public figures, many others unknown victims in markets, mosques or restaurants. The latest suicide bombing came the day after lawyers for Saddam Hussein and his aides severed all contact with the court trying the former Iraqi president after the second killing of a member of the defence team since the trial began last month. Gunmen shot lawyer Adil Al-Zubeidi in his car in Baghdad on Tuesday. A colleague was wounded. Both had been defending Saddamâs half-brother and his former vice president, among seven co-accused with Saddam in the trial for crimes against humanity. The attack renewed international concern about whether the trial can be held in Iraq amid the sectarian violence. However, US officials have backed the government in saying Iraqis themselves should judge Saddam. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw made a previously unannounced visit to Iraq on Thursday and was due to meet government officials in Baghdad. Britain has more than 8,000 troops in southern Iraq and has been Americaâs main ally. Meanwhile, a car bomb killed 10 people and wounded 20 more at an army recruiting centre on Thursday in Tikrit, police said. The brother of Iraqâs parliamentary speaker Hajem Al-Hassani was abducted in Kirkuk, police said on Thursday. They said Hatem Al-Hassani was seized on Tuesday. His brother is running in December 15 elections on a secular list headed by former prime minister Iyad Allawi. The Iraqi army said on Thursday it had found the bodies of 27 people south of the capital, with bullets to their heads and their hands and feet bound. The grisly discovery was made in the region of Jassan, near the town of Kut south of Baghdad, said Colonel Badr Al-Basri, adding that the victims were in civilian dress, he added. US troops in western Iraq killed two Al-Qaeda leaders during an operation against a town on the Syrian border, a military statement said on Thursday. In another operation in the Taji area, 20 kilometres north of Baghdad, nine civilians were killed during a cordon and search operation by US forces that began before dawn on Thursday, police Lt Haidr Al-Ubadi said. No other details were immediately available. Posted by: Dan Darling 2005-11-11 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=134719 |