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| Iraq |
| This Week in Iraq |
| 2007-02-09 |
| State Departement Weekly Report highlights Baghdad Security Crackdown Launches: • Iraqi and US forces swept through Baghdad's Sunni district of Adhamiyah February 6 in a clearing operation that marked the start of the new Baghdad Security Plan. IA Captures Death Squad Leader: • Iraqi Army (IA) Special Operations forces captured a suspected death squad leader February 1 during operations in southern Baghdad. • The death squad leader is allegedly responsible for carrying out kidnappings and murders against Iraqi civilians and ran a cell that consisted of more than 20 men. • The suspect and his group are implicated in setting-up illegal checkpoints in order to kidnap Iraqi civilians and murder them. The leader and his cell are also implicated in the kidnapping of three Iraqi civilians in December 2006 and burning them alive. Truck Bomb Blast Kills Over 100 in Baghdad’s Rusafa Neighborhood: • A bomb encased in a large truck detonated in Baghdad’s Rusafa neighborhood, in the center of Baghdad the afternoon of February 3. The bomb targeted civilians at a busy intersection, killing 105 and wounding 251. Media reporting stated the attack was the worst single bombing since the US-led invasion began in 2003. Newly Elected Iraqi Representative Accused of Terrorist Past: • Press reports say that Council of Representatives member Jamal Jafaar Mohammed al-Ibrahimi al-Basri is also Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who was sentenced to death by a Kuwaiti court in absentia for the 1983 bombings of the US and French embassies in Kuwait. Prime Minister Maliki has asked for all evidence against Jamal Mohammed be turned over to Iraqi authorities so he can face prosecution if necessary. Iraq Prime Minister Urges Faster Start to Baghdad Security Plan: • Prime Minister Maliki complained February 6 that the Baghdad security operation was off to a slow start and warned that insurgents are taking advantage of the delay to kill as many people as possible. Sadr Orders Mahdi Army not to Confront Coalition Forces: • The Chicago Tribune reports that, according to Sadrist and other Shiite officials, Muqtada al-Sadr has ordered his militia not to confront US forces and has endorsed negotiations aimed at easing the deployment of American troops in parts of the country loyal to him. GOI to Host Regional Conference on Iraq Security: • The GOI has invited Syria, Iran, and other regional countries to Baghdad next month to discuss the security situation in Iraq. The talks will be the first of ten meetings to take place in Baghdad. The Arab League, Organization of Islamic Conference, and United Nations have also been asked to attend. Electricity Overview During the week of February 1-7 electricity availability averaged 6.1 hours per day in Baghdad and 9.4 hours nationwide. Electricity output for the week was 8% above the same period in 2005. Trade and Investment Conference: • On February 1, USAID's Izdihar Private Sector Development Project and the American Chamber of Commerce of Iraq co-hosted the “Trade and Investment Showcase: Successes of the Government of Iraq” in Amman, sponsored by Microsoft. • Over 100 people representing businesses and government agencies attended the event, which focused on the new Iraqi investment law and the GOI’s efforts to become a member of the World Trade Organization. GOI officials from the Ministries of Trade, Foreign Affairs, Industry and Minerals, and Planning made presentations. IA and Marine Mission Captures 77 Detainees: • The Iraqi Army (IA) and US Marines concluded a mission that resulted in the capture of 77 detainees near Habbaniyah February 2. • The mission to detain members of murder and intimidation cells was a joint operation with Iraqi Forces and Marines of Regimental Combat Team 6, supported by local Iraqis focused on ridding their towns of insurgents. During the mission, soldiers of the 1st IA Division and Marines from the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment detained individuals suspected of coordinating insurgent attacks against Iraqi Security Forces and Coalition Forces. Several of the detainees were immediately identified as persons of special interest according to intelligence reports. Iraqi Police in Ramadi Discover Large Weapons Cache: • Iraqi members of the Albu Obaid Iraqi Police station discovered one of the largest weapons caches in the last year while conducting patrols in eastern Ramadi February 3. The cache consisted of over 300 82mm mortar rounds, three 152mm artillery rounds, two bags of homemade explosives, two Katyusha 107mm rockets, in addition to other items that included a mortar base plate, a spool of copper wire used for detonating improvised explosive devices and various smaller caliber ammunition. Iraqi Refugees Stage Sit-In Outside UNHCR Office in Damascus: • About 200 Iraqi refugees staged a sit-in outside the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Damascus to protest new residency limits for civilians and their families fleeing Iraq. Secretary Rice Announces the Creation of a Task Force on Iraqi Refugees: • Secretary Rice announced the creation of a task force headed by Undersecretary Paula Dobriansky that will coordinate US assistance for Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons, while simultaneously aiming to devise plans to help Iraqis who are at risk due to their work with the USG. UN Envoy Calls on Iraqis to Display Strong Leadership to Quell Continued Violence: • UN Special Representative of the Secretary General for Iraq Ashraf Qazi called upon the Iraqi people to display the far-sighted leadership necessary to calm the country’s rising crisis. He condemned the recent increase of violence in Iraq this week and urged Iraqis to utilize fresh thinking. UN High Commissioner for Refugees: • In a meeting with King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz and other Saudi officials in Riyadh over the weekend, UNHCR Anthony Guterres stressed the necessity of creating a stronger partnership between the UNHCR and the Muslim world. Bosnia Approves Plan to Keep Troops in Iraq: Or did they mean Bulgaria? • Bulgaria approved an extension of its military mission in Iraq for another year. Bulgaria will send 155 soldiers to Iraq to replace 120 troops and 35 support personnel who are there now. GOI Statement Against al-Jazeera: That's Government Of Iraq • The Iraqi National Media Center Director in the Cabinet Council Secretariat General issued a statement February 7 over the “aggressive stance of al- Jazeera channel toward Iraqi people and its national government.” • The statement read, in part, “We, in the time where we condemn this hostile stance for this satellite channel, call upon the Iraqi people’s representatives at the parliament to take a strict and decisive stance against this channel and to use all lawful and possible legal actions to sue it in order to stop its antagonist trend.” Video Shows US Helicopter Crash: • A video running for more than three minutes was posted to an Islamist website February 4 showing an attack on a US Apache helicopter that was claimed by al-Qaida in Iraq. • The images are accompanied by verses from the Koran, religious chants and calls for jihad in the name of Shaykh Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the head of a Sunni group linked to al-Qaida. Shiite Leader Calls for Unity: • In his first public statement in months concerning Iraq, on February 3, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani called for Muslim unity and an end to sectarian conflict. • Sistani noted that differences have existed between Shiites and Sunnis for centuries but should not be cause for bloodshed. • In an apparent referral to Abdullah bin Jabrain, Sistani also accused some unspecified individuals and groups of working to widen the division among Muslims. Jabrain is a key member of Saudi Arabia’s clerical establishment who joined other senior figures from the Wahhabi school of Sunni Islam to describe Shiites as “the most vicious enemies of Muslims.” |
| Posted by:Bobby |