Updated at 6:18 p.m. EDT, July 25, 2010
Despite extra precautions, belligerents detonated a car bomb in Karbala. A separate car bomb destroyed the al-Arabiya studios and a lawmaker’s home in Baghdad. At least 46 Iraqis were killed and 88 more were wounded in those two attacks. Curiously, no other attacks in Iraq were reported. Meanwhile, members of the Iraqiya party refuse to allow the political impasse preventing the formation of the next government to become “internationalized.”
Updated at 10:53 p.m. EDT, July 25, 2010
Security has been tightened ahead of Shi’ite religious holiday, but at least 15 Iraqis were killed and 36 more were wounded in unrelated violence. Meanwhile, a State of Law M.P. complained that the delay in forming the government has shaken the international community’s trust in Iraq. Despite that fear, Iraq’s political blocs postponed the parliamentary session by one day to pick a speaker, among other issues plaguing the new parliament. The government, however, was able to make a decision on changing Iraq’s state logo and stamp. Mirroring parliament, the Iraqi Football Association has postponed board elections until further notice.
Three Iraqis were killed and 22 more were wounded in attacks in Mosul and Basra. Meanwhile, the INA’s rejection of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for a second term as prime minister could serve as the impetus to help a new coalition of 220 lawmakers resolve the impasse preventing the formation of the next government.
Updated at 5:32 p.m. EDT, July 23, 2010
Only one Iraqi death was reported today, but 33 Iraqis were wounded in new attacks. Three U.S. soldiers who were wounded at their base in Nasariya as well. Meanwhile, Iraq trudged on another day without a new government, but the United States continued pressure on the leading contenders for prime minister.
Updated at 9:22 p.m. EDT, July 22, 2010
Three foreign contractors were killed during a mortar or rocket attack on Baghdad’s international Green Zone. At least 15 more were wounded in the attack. At least 13 Iraqis were killed as well and 18 more were wounded in other violence. Meanwhile, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, head of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (SIIC) urged Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to step aside and allow someone else to take over the premiership. Also, a new study supports anecdotal evidence that Fallujah is suffering from an increase in cancer and birth defects, perhaps caused by mutagenic and carcinogenic agents used during the war.
Updated at 8:24 p.m. EDT, July 21, 2010
At least 40 Iraqis were killed 64 more were wounded in various attacks across the country. The worst violence collapsed a building in Diyala province, which has suffered several attacks in the last few days. A U.S. soldier was also killed in Diyala when a roadside bomb blated his vehicle. Meanwhile, Deputy U.K. Prime Minister Nick Clegg called the 2003 invasion of Iraq illegal. Also, five U.S. governors revealed their secret trip to Iraq.
Updated at 9:01 p.m. EDT, July, 20, 2010
As the British inquiry into the Iraq war revealed new insights into the internal machinations behind the invasion, violence soldiered on in Iraq. At least 12 Iraqis were killed and 38 more wounded in various attacks. Five Iranians also died and five more were wounded in an attack on pilgrims. More casualties also resulted from the guerilla war between Turkey and PKK rebels. Meanwhile, a meeting between Ayad Allawi and Nouri al-Maliki, leading contenders to be the next prime minister, did not end in success.
Updated at 7:50 p.m. EDT, July 19, 2010
An attack in northern Iraq killed one Briton and as many as three other foreign nationals. At least 17 Iraqis were killed and 55 more were wounded in that attack and in other violence across the country. Meanwhile, Ayad Allawi outlined his plans for the new government should he become the next prime minister. He also met with Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who blamed Iraq’s security woes on the United States, during a trip to Damascus.
Updated at 9:50 p.m. EDT, July, 18, 2010
At least 60 Iraqis were killed and 71 more were wounded in attacks that mostly targeted Awakening Council members. Also, former deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz, who was handed over to Iraqi custody last week, has been hit with new criminal charges.
At least four Iraqis were killed and seven more were wounded in lights attacks in the north. Meanwhile, the United States must evaluate policies that could affect Iraq’s relations with Turkey and Iran.
