At least seven Iraqis were killed and five more were wounded in the latest reports, but in neighboring Turkey, suspected Kurdish rebels killed at least five policemen and wounded 12 others in a pair of attacks. Three rebels also died.
While in New York to speak at the U.N.’s 66th Session, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani to discuss relations between the two countries. The question of Kurdish rebel bases may have been on the list of topics for the two leaders as Turkey has been angling to send ground troops into Iraq after the rebels.
Separately, Turkish state television reported that suspected Kurdish rebels struck again in southeastern Turkey today. In the first attack, five policemen were killed and ten others were wounded when gunmen attacked a post in Siirt province. Mines prevented reinforcements from arriving. Witness said that the gunmen also fired on helicopters attempting to land troops. Three of the gunmen were killed, and fighting continued into the night. Separately, gunmen attacked a police headquarters and army post in Diyarbakir province. Two policemen were wounded there.
The most likely suspect, the Kurdistan Worker Party (P.K.K.), uses northern Iraq as a base from which to run its struggle for Kurdish autonomy. Attacks have escalated in recent weeks. Meanwhile, Turkish soldiers have been massing near Iraq, possibly ahead of cross-border ground operations.
Gunmen in Amiriyat killed three policemen and wounded three others.
In Baghdad, a Ministry employee was shot to death in the Jamiaa neighborhood.
Gunmen killed a former Sahwa member near Baquba.
In Mosul, two soldiers were killed at their checkpoint. A grenade attack at a bank left two policemen wounded.
