Updated at 8:17 p.m. EST, Feb. 22, 2010
At least 44 Iraqis were killed and 18 more were wounded in a storm of attacks across the country. Most of the attacks occurred in and around Baghdad, which has been unusually quiet in recent day. When there is a major or otherwise gruesome attack in Iraq, the story is often accompanied by many other reports that would have gone Also, Gen. Ray Odierno admitted that there is a "Plan B" for a slower drawdown of U.S. forces should the political landscape remain chaotic after March elections.
Eight people were killed, including a pregnant woman, in a bloody home invasion in Wahda. Some of the Shi’ite victims were shot, but a number were also beheaded or had their throats slit. Eight suspects were arrested in connection. The man was a campaign worker and was seen hanging posters for an associate of Ahmed Chalabi.
Five people were killed in a car bombing outside the Internal Affairs office in Ramadi. Earlier, authorities believed it to be a suicide bombing. At least five people were wounded as well.
In Baghdad, 11 people were killed in Amin, but no other details were given. A home invasion possibly motivated by robbery left a Shi’ite married couple and their two daughters dead. A sniper killed a policeman at a checkpoint. A street sweeper was killed in a small arms attack. Gunmen killed a university professor. Six people were injured during a mortar attack on the Green Zone; their nationalities were not released. Two defense ministry personnel were killed in a drive-by shooting. An interior ministry police officer and civilian employee were wounded during a shooting as they sat in their car. Late in the day, a policeman was shot dead, and a bomb wounded a physician.
Also in Baghdad, Security forces seized weapons and ammunition in Amari. A bomb was defused in Qanat. No casualties were reported after mortars fell on a U.S. base in an eastern neighborhood. Also, arrested a suspect thought to be an assistant to Adel al-Mashhadani.
In Mosul, gunmen killed two soldiers at a Sumar checkpoint. At an al-Jame al-Kabeer checkpoint two policemen were killed in a second shooting; at least two more policemen were killed in a checkpoint shootout, possibly this one. Two policemen were wounded in an I.E.D. attack in al-Majmoua al-Thaqafiya. A civilian man was shot to death. Also, Christian leaders are demanding more protection after a surge in attacks against Christian citizens in recents days.
Gunmen killed a policeman in Kirkuk. A bomb at a police officer’s home failed to harm him, but it did wound a family member and caused material damages.
The body of an Iraqi contractor was found, riddled with bullets, in Rashad.
In Tikrit, one man was killed and a second was wounded as they were allegedly planting a bomb in a car.
Police in Khalis liberated three kidnap victims and arrested their abductors.
In Basra, no casualties were reported after a shooting at the U.S. base housed in the airport. Later, the base suffered a Katyusha rocket attack. Nineteen suspects were detained across the province.
The Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) blamed the United States for opening the door to Iranian interference in Iraq.
