Updated at 5:25 p.m. EDT, June 9, 2009
At least three Iraqis were killed and 17 more Iraqis were reported wounded in light violence. No Coalition deaths were reported. Meanwhile, the U.S. military has released a Shi’ite militia leader believed responsible for the deaths of U.S. troops, and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Iraqis to work together to promote reconciliation.
The U.S. military has released Laith al-Khazali, a follower of Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, as part of reconciliation efforts in Iraq. Thanks to a security pact signed last year, U.S. forces must release their detainees or hand them over to Iraqi authorities. Khazali is believed to have a led an operation that resulted in the deaths of five U.S. soldiers in Karbala two years ago.
In Baghdad, a mortar round fell on a gas cylinder warehouse, causing many cylinders to explode and wounding three guards.
Near Baghdad, an al-Qaeda leader was wounded in a shooting incident. His two bodyguards were killed.
Two policemen were wounded during a bombing in Fallujah. Six suspects were detained across the city. A bicycle bomb wounded seven people.
In Mosul, a bomb targeting a U.S. patrol wounded two Iraqi civilians instead. Security forces detained two gunmen before they attacked an army patrol. A bomb in al-Ekhaa wounded a woman and her daughter. Gunmen attacked a restaurant where they killed a student.
A criminal gang was captured in Karbala.
Seven suspects were captured in Basra. A number of weapons and vehicles were confiscated.
Two Katyusha rockets were found in Nasariya.
