War News for Wednesday, November 12, 2008

The Washington Post is reporting the deaths of two U.S. soldiers in a friendly-fire Small arms fire attack in Mosul, Iraq on Wednesday, November 12th. Six additional soldiers were wounded in the attack. One Iraqi soldier was also killed.


Insurgents vow to resist Iraq security pact:

Mideast weather roundup:


Reported Security incidents:

Baghdad:
#1: A bomb exploded in a parked car in a bustling section of downtown Baghdad early Wednesday, killing four people and wounding 15 others, police said, the third consecutive day of morning rush hour blasts in the Iraqi capital.

At least four people, including two police officers, have been killed in a car bomb attack in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, police have said. The bomb went off on Wednesday at about 9.30am (0630 GMT) in Saadun street, one of the main streets running through the capital.

#2: A half-hour later, a roadside bomb blew up in a Shiite-dominated neighborhood in northern Baghdad, officials said. Seven people, including three policemen, were injured.

#3: The Iraqi army killed five militants and captured nine others hiding in an underground shelter on Wednesday during a regular operation against al Qaeda in the Himreen mountains area of Diyala province, the Defence Ministry said.

#4: A car bomb killed two people and wounded 10 others in the Shaab district of northern Baghdad, police said.

#5: 12 people were killed and 60 others were wounded in a dual bombing with a booby-trapped car and roadside bomb at al-Neairiya neighborhood, eastern Baghdad, a source from the Iraqi police said on Wednesday. “The incident took place at a bus station,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq. “The car bomb went off first, and then was followed by the roadside bomb,” he added.

#6: Around 4 pm a roadside bomb detonated inside a civilian car in Zayuna neighborhood (east Baghdad). Two people were injured. When police arrived found out that the two were planning to plant the bomb somewhere in Baghdad neighborhoods. The police arrested them.

#7: Police found two dead bodies in Baghdad today. One was found in Saidiyah in Karkh bank and one was found in Obeidi in Rusafa bank.


Balad:
#1: The U.S. military says an F-16 fighter jet was destroyed after it caught fire during takeoff. The military says the pilot pulled out of the planned takeoff early Wednesday morning and the fire was extinguished next to the runway at Balad Air Base north of Baghdad. The pilot had no apparent injuries but was taken to a hospital at the air base for evaluation. The aircraft was assigned to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing.


Kirkuk:
#1: A civilian was killed on Wednesday in an armed attack in southern Kirkuk, a source from the Kirkuk operations room said. “Unknown gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniform showered a civilian with bullets in al-Azouba region in southern Kirkuk, killing him instantly,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq.

#2: A bomb attached to a car wounded Christian politician Ashur Yalda and his two bodyguards in Kirkuk on Tuesday, police said.

#3: A magnetic bomb detonated under a civilian car in Ummal neighborhood in downtown Kirkuk. The car belongs to a member of the committee to implement article 140 of the Iraqi constitution which deals with the disputed areas between the Kurdistan region and the central government. The member was injured with three others who were with him.

#4: A car bomb detonated followed by an attack of light machine guns in Baladiyah neighborhood in Mosul city. One soldier was injured.

#5: A roadside bomb detonated in Al-Askari neighborhood in Mosul. One civilian was injured.


Mosul:
#1: Meanwhile, in the northern city of Mosul, two Christian sisters have been killed after armed men broke into their home, police said. The women's mother was hurt in the attack and two policemen were later wounded when a bomb left by the intruders went off as they entered the house.

#2: A roadside bomb wounded four people, including a policeman, in central Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.



Afghanistan:
#1: Gunmen shot and killed an American aid worker as he traveled to work Wednesday in northwestern Pakistan, the latest in a spate of attacks on foreigners in the militancy-wracked country. Police did not speculate on the identity of the assailants, who also killed the man's driver. The shooting occurred in University Town, an upscale area of the main northwestern city of Peshawar. Police identified the dead American as Stephen Vance, and officials said he was involved in U.S.-government funded development projects in the tribal areas next to the border.
The gunmen blocked the men's vehicle in a narrow lane with their own car, then opened fire with automatic weapons, said a Western security official in Peshawar.

#2: A suicide bomber driving an oil tanker detonated his explosives outside an Afghan government office during a provincial council meeting Wednesday, killing at least six people and wounding 42, officials said.The attack in this former Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan ripped through the council office, flattened five nearby homes and damaged the offices of the country's intelligence service. The bomb dug a crater some 15 feet into the ground.Six people died and 42 were wounded in the blast, said Rahmatullah Raufi, the governor of Kandahar province. Among the dead were two intelligence agents, a police officer and three civilians, Raufi said.

#3: update Suspected Taliban fighters hijacked trucks carrying Humvees and other supplies for U.S.-led troops in Afghanistan, authorities said yesterday after a brazen attack near the Khyber Pass that underscored the militants’ grip across key mountain strongholds. “There were some U.S. military materials that were taken — Humvees and water tank trailers,” said Maj. John Redfield.

Later Monday, a separate group of insurgents halted a truck carrying what appeared to be a NATO jeep, setting the military vehicle on fire, Mahmood said. NATO officials could not immediately be reached for comment on that incident.