Thursday: 1 US Soldier, 6 Iraqis Killed; 15 Iraqis Wounded

by Margaret Griffis, October 29, 2009

Updated at 8:49 p.m. EDT, Oct. 29, 2009

At least six Iraqis were killed and 15 more were wounded in the latest violence even as Iraqi security personnel rounded up colleagues who stand accused of negligence or worse in Sunday’s bloody bomb attacks. One U.S. soldier died of non-combat injuries at Camp Adder. Meanwhile, Kurdish lawmakers walked away from the debate that could resolve the elections law impasse in parliament.

Dozen of officials, including 11 army officers, were detained in connection with last Sunday’s deadly bombings in Baghdad. The group is in custody for failure to prevent the attack, and an investigation is expected to determine if some were actually helping the assailants.

Kurdish lawmakers boycotted parliament’s latest attempt to overcome an elections law impasse. They blamed Arabs for obstructing progress in the debate; however, other lawmakers say it is the Kurds who are being stubborn. This impasse could delay January’s national elections. At issue is the problem of multi-ethnic Kirkuk, which saw its own provincial election postponed indefinitely and forced the national census to be pushed back well into next year. The Kurds who view it as historically theirs would like it incorporated into the Kurdish Autonomous Region; however, the Arabs and Turkmen who live there want to remain under the central government’s authority.  U.S. officials and Iraqi election authorities urged lawmakers to resolve the dispute.

In Mosul, gunmen shot up an Amil checkpoint, killing three policemen and wounding an officer. A policeman wounded one gunman elsewhere.

In Baghdad, a bomb on Palestine St. left five wounded.

A suicide bomber inside his home in Tal Afar managed to only kill himself as he was adjusting his explosives vest.

Three people were wounded by a blast in Mafraq.

A bomb in Uthmaniya wounded a man and his son.

A suicide car bomber targeting a U.S. patrol exploded in Baquba, killing one Iraqi and wounding two others.

An I.E.D. in Ramadi wounded one civilian.

A rocket fell south of Kirkuk, but no casualties were reported.No casualties were reported in a blast in the city.

Twenty suspects were captured in Basra province.

Read more by Margaret Griffis