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March 10, 2007
18 Killed in Baghdad Suicide Bombing
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 9:32 a.m. ET
BAGHDAD (AP) -- A suicide car bomb struck Baghdad's Shiite militia
stronghold Saturday, killing at least 18 people as international envoys met
in the Iraqi capital to talk about stabilizing the violence-shattered
country.
The blast hit an Iraqi patrol in Sadr City at midday, scattering burning
debris across a small bridge, witnesses said.
An Associated Press reporter traveling with U.S. troops nearby said the
explosion showered shrapnel across a joint U.S.-Iraq security station 300
yards away. The partially shattered windshield of a car landed at the gates
of the compound.
Police said at least 18 people were killed and 48 wounded.
Home to about 2.5 million of Baghdad's poorest residents, Sadr City is the
base for fighters allied to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. His
militia, the Mahdi Army, has laid low in recent weeks during a U.S.-Iraqi
security crackdown under pressure from Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Hours earlier, Iraqi special forces teams backed by U.S. soldiers detained
six suspects believed to be a rogue members of the Mahdi Army, the U.S.
military said in a statement.
The suspects were accused of coordinating and carrying out kidnappings and
murders of Iraqi civilians, the statement said.
In central Baghdad, two mortars fell near Iraq's Foreign Ministry, where
envoys gathered for an international conference on how to quell the violence
and bolster Iraq's government. There were no reports of injuries, but smoke
was visible from the meeting area.
Meanwhile, Iraqi officials said they were holding a top al-Qaida official,
but not the terror mastermind Abu Omar al-Baghdadi who they believed was
captured a day earlier.
''After preliminary investigations, it was proven that the arrested al-Qaida
person is not Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, but, in fact, another important al-Qaida
official,'' said Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Mousawi, an Iraqi military spokesman.
''Interrogations and investigations are still under way to get more
information,'' he said.
Al-Mousawi declined to give the suspect's name on Saturday.
It was al-Mousawi who announced late Friday that al-Baghdadi had been
captured. A senior adviser to the prime minister also had told the AP that
al-Baghdadi had been taken into custody. The adviser spoke on condition of
anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
Al-Mousawi said the suspect at first identified himself as al-Baghdadi, and
that his identity was corroborated by another man captured with him. The
reported arrest followed rumors this week that al-Baghdadi's brother had
been arrested in a raid near Tikrit.
Almost nothing is known of al-Baghdadi, including his real name and what he
looks like; his capture would be difficult for officials to verify.
He is believed to lead the shadowy Islamic State of Iraq, an
al-Qaida-inspired group that challenged the authority of Iraq's elected
government. He has also signed militant messages posted online, as the
leader of the Mujahedeen Shura Council -- an umbrella group that includes
al-Qaida in Iraq.
An alleged member of the Islamic State of Iraq was among 27 suspects
detained in U.S. raids across Iraq overnight, the U.S. military said.
One suspect was killed and 18 were detained in Taji, an area on the northern
outskirts of Baghdad, the military said in a statement.
Eight suspects were captured in Mosul, 225 miles northwest of Baghdad, and
one was detained in Ramadi,115 kilometers 70 miles west of Baghdad, it said.
Also Saturday, the U.S. military said it was investigating the shooting of
three Iraqis in Baghdad's Azamiyah neighborhood. American paratroopers fired
on a vehicle when it failed to respond to warning signals, the military said
in a statement. Three Iraqis were killed and three others were wounded in
Friday's incident, it said.
In other violence, a roadside bomb killed three Iraqi policemen and wounded
another Saturday in central Ramadi, police said.
Gunmen opened fire Saturday on Shiite pilgrims in Latifiyah, about 20 miles
south of Baghdad, police said. One person was killed and three were wounded.
Later, two more pilgrims were killed in shootings in eastern Baghdad, police
said.
The pilgrims were on their way back from a Shiite shrine in Karbala, where
millions of faithful were performing rites this weekend for Arbaeen, a
holiday that marks the end of a 40-day mourning period after the death
anniversary of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson.
Some 340 people, mostly Shiite pilgrims en route to Karbala, were killed in
sectarian attacks this past week.
18 Killed in Baghdad Suicide Bombing
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 9:32 a.m. ET
BAGHDAD (AP) -- A suicide car bomb struck Baghdad's Shiite militia
stronghold Saturday, killing at least 18 people as international envoys met
in the Iraqi capital to talk about stabilizing the violence-shattered
country.
The blast hit an Iraqi patrol in Sadr City at midday, scattering burning
debris across a small bridge, witnesses said.
An Associated Press reporter traveling with U.S. troops nearby said the
explosion showered shrapnel across a joint U.S.-Iraq security station 300
yards away. The partially shattered windshield of a car landed at the gates
of the compound.
Police said at least 18 people were killed and 48 wounded.
Home to about 2.5 million of Baghdad's poorest residents, Sadr City is the
base for fighters allied to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. His
militia, the Mahdi Army, has laid low in recent weeks during a U.S.-Iraqi
security crackdown under pressure from Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Hours earlier, Iraqi special forces teams backed by U.S. soldiers detained
six suspects believed to be a rogue members of the Mahdi Army, the U.S.
military said in a statement.
The suspects were accused of coordinating and carrying out kidnappings and
murders of Iraqi civilians, the statement said.
In central Baghdad, two mortars fell near Iraq's Foreign Ministry, where
envoys gathered for an international conference on how to quell the violence
and bolster Iraq's government. There were no reports of injuries, but smoke
was visible from the meeting area.
Meanwhile, Iraqi officials said they were holding a top al-Qaida official,
but not the terror mastermind Abu Omar al-Baghdadi who they believed was
captured a day earlier.
''After preliminary investigations, it was proven that the arrested al-Qaida
person is not Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, but, in fact, another important al-Qaida
official,'' said Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Mousawi, an Iraqi military spokesman.
''Interrogations and investigations are still under way to get more
information,'' he said.
Al-Mousawi declined to give the suspect's name on Saturday.
It was al-Mousawi who announced late Friday that al-Baghdadi had been
captured. A senior adviser to the prime minister also had told the AP that
al-Baghdadi had been taken into custody. The adviser spoke on condition of
anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
Al-Mousawi said the suspect at first identified himself as al-Baghdadi, and
that his identity was corroborated by another man captured with him. The
reported arrest followed rumors this week that al-Baghdadi's brother had
been arrested in a raid near Tikrit.
Almost nothing is known of al-Baghdadi, including his real name and what he
looks like; his capture would be difficult for officials to verify.
He is believed to lead the shadowy Islamic State of Iraq, an
al-Qaida-inspired group that challenged the authority of Iraq's elected
government. He has also signed militant messages posted online, as the
leader of the Mujahedeen Shura Council -- an umbrella group that includes
al-Qaida in Iraq.
An alleged member of the Islamic State of Iraq was among 27 suspects
detained in U.S. raids across Iraq overnight, the U.S. military said.
One suspect was killed and 18 were detained in Taji, an area on the northern
outskirts of Baghdad, the military said in a statement.
Eight suspects were captured in Mosul, 225 miles northwest of Baghdad, and
one was detained in Ramadi,115 kilometers 70 miles west of Baghdad, it said.
Also Saturday, the U.S. military said it was investigating the shooting of
three Iraqis in Baghdad's Azamiyah neighborhood. American paratroopers fired
on a vehicle when it failed to respond to warning signals, the military said
in a statement. Three Iraqis were killed and three others were wounded in
Friday's incident, it said.
In other violence, a roadside bomb killed three Iraqi policemen and wounded
another Saturday in central Ramadi, police said.
Gunmen opened fire Saturday on Shiite pilgrims in Latifiyah, about 20 miles
south of Baghdad, police said. One person was killed and three were wounded.
Later, two more pilgrims were killed in shootings in eastern Baghdad, police
said.
The pilgrims were on their way back from a Shiite shrine in Karbala, where
millions of faithful were performing rites this weekend for Arbaeen, a
holiday that marks the end of a 40-day mourning period after the death
anniversary of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson.
Some 340 people, mostly Shiite pilgrims en route to Karbala, were killed in
sectarian attacks this past week.
