Posted on 01/23/2008 10:22:13 AM PST by NormsRevenge
BAGHDAD - An explosion ripped through an apartment building and surrounding houses in northern Iraq Wednesday shortly after police arrived to investigate a tip about a weapons cache, killing at least nine people.
In a separate incident, a suicide car bomber targeted a police convoy near the northern city of Kirkuk, killing at least five civilians and injuring 11, police said.
The cause of the apartment blast in the city of Mosul was unknown. Brig. Gen. Abdul-Karim al-Jubouri said it occurred about 4:30 p.m. after the arrival of Iraqi police forces who went to the building after receiving a tip that weapons and explosives were hidden inside.
The entire building, a suspected bomb-making factory, was empty. But the blast devastated nearby houses, killing nine people and injuring 70, al-Jubouri said.
Three days ago, a U.S. military spokesman said al-Qaida had been chased from all major Iraqi cities except Mosul, 225 miles northwest of Baghdad.
Attacks have persisted in recent months in northern Iraq even as violence has declined in Baghdad and other areas.
The attacker in Kirkuk missed his apparent target — a convoy carrying the head of the area's police academy, Col. Jawdat Hussein, as he patrolled a market in Debis west of Kirkuk, police spokesman Brig. Gen. Sarhat Qadir said.
Instead, the blast killed at least five civilians and injured 11, Qadir said.
Kirkuk is an oil-rich city 180 miles north of Baghdad.
In the capital Baghdad, gunmen opened fire on Iraqi soldiers resting on the side of a highway in central Baghdad, killing three and injuring at least one, according to police and the U.S. military.
The drive-by shooting occurred as the troops were on foot patrol about 11 a.m. in the Bab al-Mudham district on the eastern side of the Tigris River, a police officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
One of the soldiers, who was wounded in his leg and stomach, said the patrol was near the Finance Ministry when they were attacked. He would only give his first name as Muhsin.
"The highway was almost empty when a speeding white car approached us and the passengers showered us with bullets," he said. "We were taken by surprise and we did not have the time to shoot back."
The attack in the heart of Baghdad provided a deadly example of the stark challenges facing the Iraqi forces as they work to take over their own security so U.S.-led troops can eventually go home. It was the latest in a series of bombings, shootings and mortar attacks as militants seek to undermine recent security gains.
Iraqi politicians and the Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki have been criticized for failing to take advantage of recent security gains to make progress on key U.S.-backed reforms believed necessary to stem support for the Sunni-led insurgency.
With the help of improving Iraqi troops and Awakening Councils — mostly Sunni tribal groups that have turned against al-Qaida in Iraq — the U.S. military says it has gained command of many key areas across central Iraq.
But it is far more difficult to prevent isolated suicide strikes against less-protected targets.
Achmed, don’t cut the blue wire!!!
What Ahmed didn’t know was that Achmed, his second cousin twice removed, was color-blind...
A work related accident? Where is OSHA when you need them.LOL!
Sometimes Achmed hits the fan.
These must have been Palestinian undocumented workers.
Building the bombs Iraqis don’t want to build themselves.
And having them blow up in their faces once in a while, just like in the good ‘ole bomb factories back in the homeland.
This is not a funny matter folks...AQI just exploded an apartment house where they had hidden an operational bomb factory among the Iraqi population.....killing those innocent people.
This is the enemy....
..do keep in mind that a recent report about insurgents has the number of around 90% foreigners. You just don't establish a bomb factory without people knowing who's who in the neighborhood
Since the report says the building was empty when the police arrived, it sounds like the bad guys got a tip and left a suprise for the Iraqi police.
You’re right. It’s a serious matter, not a joking one. The enemy kills a large number of civilians and the press makes it sound like those deaths are the fault of the US military.
LOL!
I agree all kidding aside...
But, you have to wonder (due to the massive operation and carnage the explosion create) why none of those “residents” figured out what was going on there...
I think a lot of the locals knew what was going on there, and were kept down by the fear factor the SOB’s had over the immediate area...
Equate this to areas where you know drug manufacturing and other illegal activity is “ignored”, but known to a certain extent by the local population...
The psychological effects and intimidation factors are very similar between the two situations/conditions...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.