At least three Iraqis were killed and 10 more were wounded in light violence. The sparse amount of reports trickling out of Iraq are likely due to the combination of Muslim and Christian holidays this month.
The increasing number of Iraqi refugees in Michigan has forced the opening of a second war trauma center in that state; however, the slow processing of documents has left thousands of Iraqis awaiting resettlement, some into the United States, in a kind of limbo back in the Middle East.
Iraq’s female politicians continue to protest the low number of women selected for cabinet posts in the new government. Only one woman has accepted her post, while a second rejected hers in protest. Separately, an Iraqiya party member claimed that cabinet posts given to other Iraqiya members were bought.
An operation in Anbar province netted 93 al-Qaeda suspects. Awakening Council members assisted in the operation.
With the formation of the new government behind them, Iraqis in Basra are hoping Baghdad will allow them to push forward with a referendum on autonomy for the province.
In Baghdad, an army general was killed and his daughter wounded during a shooting in Mansour. Gunmen also wounded a lieutenant colonel in Amiriya. A prominent Sunni sheikh’s cousin was gunned down in Khan Dhari. In Zayouna, three people were wounded during a blast at a funeral. Several rockets and bombs were defused in the city. Also, security has been tightened around Baghdad ahead of Christmas.
A policeman and two civilians during a pair of blasts in Sadr City.
In Kut, a man was injured when the bomb he was making exploded unexpectedly. Another explosion damaged a car.
A bomb wounded an army soldier near Rashad.
An Iraqi policeman was shot dead in Mosul.
A U.S. convoy near Mahaweel was targeted in a blast that left no casualties.
Security forces defused two bombs planted near electrical pylons in Hamiya.
An integrity director has accused several people in Diyala province of corruption and aiding terrorists.
