Updated at 8:25 p.m. EDT, Apr. 6, 2009
At least 45 people were killed and 176 more were wounded across the country. Baghdad suffered a devastating series of car bombings this morning, while Mosul was unusually quiet. In Diyala province, a U.S. soldier was killed by hostile fire during operations. Also, jury selection has begun in the United States for the trial of a U.S. soldier accused of murdering an Iraqi family while deployed.
In Baghdad and Sadr City, a series of car bombings left dozens of casualties. No one took credit for the bombings, but Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki blamed Ba’ath Party operatives who were marking tomorrow’s anniversary of the party’s founding. Most others blamed al-Qaeda. Still, the possibility that this could be retribution for the recent arrests of Awakening Council (Sahwa) members must be looked into. The U.S.-backed group is filled with former Sunni militants who turned their back on al-Qaeda; however, their distrust of the central government was heightened in recent weeks when the government delayed paying the group their salaries. In some cases, the delay was two-months long. Then came the arrests.
A car bomb at a marketplace in Sadr City killed 12 people and wounded 65 others, including women and children. In Allawi, another car bomb killed six laborers and wounded 17 others. Four people were killed and 20 more were wounded by a car bomb in Husseiniya. In an eastern neighborhood, possibly Niayriyah, a car bomb targeting an Interior Ministry official left three dead and 12 wounded. A pair of car bombs in al-Maalif killed 12 people and wounded 42 more at a clinic and a marketplace. A sticky bomb attached to a taxi wounded two people in Doura. Later, a bomb in Adhamiya wounded four civilians. Another bomb wounded two civilians and two policemen elsewhere.
A civilian was killed and two others were wounded during clashes in west Mosul.
A sheikh was shot dead in Tal Afar.
Near Mosul in Wadi Hadr, police said that U.S. forces accidentally killed a civilian.
Three civilians were killed in a small arms attack in Jalawla.
A suicide bomber in Duluiya wounded seven Iraqi soldiers.
Gunmen wounded a man during a drive-by in Taza.
A civilian was killed in Fallujah.
Two physicians in Baquba were arrested for allegedly supporting armed groups.
Fifteen suspects were detained around Kirkuk.
Police arrested two people in Kut.
Continuing operations in Basra netted 74 suspects.
In Suwayra, a bank manager was arrested after police found munitions deposited at the bank. Two al-Qaeda suspects were detained separately.
A U.S. base near Amara suffered a rocket attack, but no casualties were reported.