Updated at 7:06 p.m. EDT, Oct. 28, 2009
The political situation in disputed border areas surrounding Iraqi Kurdistan continues to threaten the stability of the country. At least 10 Iraqis were killed and 19 more were wounded in attacks around northern and central Iraq though none of these casualties was the direct result of Kurdish tensions. One U.S. soldier died from non-combat injuries at Camp Victory as well.
Iraq soldiers were deployed near Kirkuk in the disputed city of Daquq and ordered Kurdish Peshmerga fighters out. In the past, similar developments in other border towns have flared into violence. In Baghdad, lawmakers once again failed to pass an elections law because of these Kirkuk-Kurdistan tensions. Kurdish President Massoud Barzani meanwhile reiterated demands that the area be incorporated into the Kurdish Autonomous Region. Separately, the Kurdish parliament approved changing the structure of the region’s semi-autonomous government. In particular, a number of ministries were merged together.
In Baghdad, six people were injured when a bomb exploded in the Hurriya neighborhood. A bomb in Baladiyat killed three women and wounded four men.
In Mosul, four people were killed and six more were wounded during a roadside blast. A sticky bomb was defused on a communication director’s car.
A roadside bomb in Tikrit blasted an oil tanker, killing the driver and his assistant.
An Awakening Council (Sahwa) leader was killed in a small arms attack in Khalis.
A Sahwa official near Samarra in Jabiriya escaped a sticky bomb attack but a female bystander was wounded.
Two policemen were wounded when a bomb exploded in Jalawla.
Three Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) suspects were detained in Hawija.
Seventeen suspects were arrested in Basra.
An arms cache was found near Hit.
A pipeline damaged in a blast near Kirkuk on Monday should resume transporting oil to Turkey today.
