Updated at 8:20 p.m. EST, Dec. 7, 2008
At least 12 Iraqis were killed and 65 more were wounded during the latest attacks. In one, the mayor of Baquba suffered injuries. No Coalition deaths were reported. Meanwhile, a National Police commander announced new programs as Iraqi forces begin to take over more responsibility for security, while Foreign Ministry undersecretary Labid Abbawi said that he is working on a new security agreement for British troops. Also, a video has raised questions over the deaths of two U.S. soldiers in 2006.
A bomb killed three people and wounded 42 others in Baquba. Among the injured were the mayor, the provincial police commander, a number of policemen and several Awakening Council (Sahwa) members. The mayor was leading journalists on a walking tour when the bomb exploded inside an abandoned shop. The tour was meant to highlight the dismantling of security barriers erected during the height of sectarian violence. Journalists and civilians were also among the casualties. Separately, an suspected al-Qaed emir was detained.
In Mosul, clashes between gunmen and police left one gunman dead and six civilians injured. Gunmen killed two Yazidis inside their liquor store. Nine people were wounded when gunmen lobbed at grenade at police in al-Saa’a. A bomb in a car in Kokjili wounded a civilian. Also, a suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq leader was captured.
Three policemen were killed and four were wounded in three separate roadside bombings in Kirkuk.
In Baghdad, two people were injured during a bombing in Saidiya. U.S. forces captured three suspects including a Hezbollah brigade member in Adhamiya.
A bomb blast killed three women in Balad Ruz. One of the women was the wife of a suspected al-Qaeda leader. The two others were her sisters.
Gunmen wounded a Sahwa fighter in Rashid.
Two children were liberated after a two year long kidnapping ordeal in Fallujah. One was malnourished, while the other showed evidence of torture. Nine people were arrested. Separately, several people were detained in connection with last week’s bombing in town.
Twelve improvised explosive devices were defused south of Amara, while 16 men were detained in the city.
Nine suspects were detained in Basra.
Meanwhile, honor killings continue to occur in Kurdistan despite laws against it. Separately, 121 detainees were pardoned and released from Kurdish jails in celebration of the Eid.
Najaf has deployed 34,000 security personnel to handle the expected million visitors to the holy city during the Eid.
A spokesman for the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) said the separatist group would observe a unilateral cease-fire in their fight against Turkey, starting with the Eid holiday and lasting nine days. Turkey usually ignores such offers. The PKK wants to form an autonomous Kurdish state from parts of Iraq, Turkey, Iran, Syria and Armenia.
Compiled by Margaret Griffis
