War News for Saturday, February 21, 2009

MNF-Iraq is reporting the death of a Multi-National Division - Baghdad soldier while conducting a combat patrol in an undisclosed location near Baghdad on Saturday, February 21st.

The DoD is reporting a new death previously unreported by the military. PFC Cwislyn K. Walter died from a non-combat related incident in Kuwait city on Thursday, February 19th.

The AFP is reporting the deaths of three U.S. led coalition soldiers in a roadside bomb attack in Uruzgan province, Afghanistan on Friday, February 20th. We are assuming these to be American soldiers.


Feb. 19 airpower summary:

Feb. 18 airpower summary:

U.S. drones widen attack on militants inside Pakistan:

Sadr renews idea of local alliances with Iraq PM:

Kurdish leader in Iraq wants rights protected:

Fleischer says Bush changed after WMDs not found: (and speaking of BS)

Pentagon: Guantanamo humane prison: (And here's another crock of s*!#)

The Other Working Dogs of Iraq:

99-year-old Palestinian bitten by Israeli army dog: (off topic but this makes me sick--whisker)

Wisconsin to Deploy Largest Force Since WWII:


Reported Security incidents:

Baghdad:
#1: Four civilians were wounded in two blasts by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in al-Mansour area, western Baghdad, on Saturday, an Iraqi police source said. “A roadside IED went off in al-Mansour area, western Baghdad, on Saturday evening near an Iraqi army patrol, wounding two civilians,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “Two civilians others were wounded when a second IED went off in the same area a short while after the first one,” the source added.


Jarf Al Sakhr:
Two gunmen on Saturday were wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) blew up while they were planting it near Hilla city, according to a police source. “The explosive charge detonated in Jarf al-Sakhr area (60 km northwest of Hilla),” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Hilla:
#1: A candidate in Iraq's January 31 provincial elections was on Saturday killed by gunmen outside his house in Babil province, south of the capital Baghdad, police said. "A group of armed men killed Mohammed Hadi Layhub, a member of the Al-Umma party and a provincial elections candidate, at his house" south of Hilla, the capital of Babil, said Kadhem al-Shamari.


Diwaniya:
#1: An Iraqi police source told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) that unidentified gunmen today shot and killed an Iraqi police officer in front of his house in the area of Diwaniya, the largest city in Al-Qadsiya south of Baghdad and then ran away after that.


Tikrit:
#1: A sticky improvised explosive device (IED) on Saturday went off in downtown Tikrit city, wounding a police officer, according to a local security source. “Lt. Arkan Sabir from the Quick Response Department (QRD) in Salah al-Din province was seriously wounded when an explosive charge stuck to his vehicle blew up in al-Arbaeen St, downtown Tikrit,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Makhmour:
#1: An unknown corpse on Saturday was found by Iraqi army personnel near Makhmour district, according to a military source. “Today, an army force found a body of a man in his thirties on the main road linking Makhmour district to al-Qayara district near Diyozanti village (28 km west of Makhmour),” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.“The body bore gunshot wounds,” the source noted, adding that an investigation is currently underway to reveal the motivations behind the murder.


Kirkuk:
#1: A roadside bomb wounded an Iraqi soldier when it struck a patrol southwest of Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.


Mosul:
#1: An Iraqi serviceman on Saturday was wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) targeted his patrol vehicle in Mosul city, according to a local security source. “The explosion occurred in Sumor neighborhood, southeastern Mosul,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: Helicopter gunships and artillery targeted several militant locations overnight in Bajaur tribal district, where Pakistani security forces are fighting Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters. The action that started late Friday continued Saturday morning. “Our forces have destroyed some important hideouts of militants and killed some 25 insurgents, including a commander Faizullah,” said a security official from paramilitary troops Bajaur Scouts.

#2: In the neighbouring Khyber tribal region, a remote-controlled bomb planted along Pak-Afghan Highway destroyed a tanker carrying fuel supplies for NATO forces. “One bypasser was killed and two more injured, while the driver remained unhurt,” said a local official, Amirzada Khan.

#3: Separately, sectarian tensions in Dera Ismail Khan district, which borders ungoverned tribal region, intensified a day after a suicide bombing at Shia funeral procession killed 35 people and injured more than 150. Unknown gunmen opened fire on a group of Sunni Muslims in a market, leaving two of them dead and three more injured, said a police officer, Amanullah Khan.

#4: In another incident, two suspected terrorists were killed when their explosive-laden car exploded pre-maturely in Lucky Marwat area, which is adjacent to Dera Ismail Khan.

#5: Militants shot dead a policeman after accusing him of being U.S. spy and left his body by the roadside near the Afghan border on Saturday, a government official in North Waziristan tribal region said.

#6: Afghan police guarding a World Food Programme convoy killed three insurgents and wounded two more after they were ambushed in the Khash Rud district of Nimroz province, some 675 km (420 miles) southwest of Kabul, the Interior Ministry said.

#7: Two road construction workers were killed in a mine explosion in Ghazni province, some 130 km (80 miles) southwest of Kabul, the Defence Ministry said.

#8: Two soldiers of Afghan National Army (ANA) were killed and four others sustained injures when their vehicle hit by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan's eastern Khost province, an official said Saturday. "The incident occurred in the Sabari district on Friday, as a result two soldiers were killed and four others got wounded," Provincial Police Chief Abdul Qayum Baqizai told Xinhua.


Casualty Reports:

Capt. Joe Bogart, morning of Oct. 6, 2006 the Army's Fifth Engineer Battalion was clearing roadside bombs in Baghdad when the convoy was hit. An explosion four feet from Bogart's command vehicle sent shrapnel shooting into his head. He lost his right eye. He suffered brain damage and severe facial fractures.

Army Pfc. Daryl Pelland, 19, was seriously wounded in an Iraq bombing last month. He was wounded Jan. 24 when a remote controlled bomb exploded near the Humvee in which he was riding south of Baghdad. Pelland and two other soldiers were wounded. Pelland was flown to Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C., where he is recovering from wounds to his left leg and foot.Pelland, a gunner, is a member of the Army's 77th Field Artillery. "We were the last vehicle in the convoy, and there was an explosion," Pelland said. "Three of us were hit." Pelland has had multiple surgeries to remove shrapnel from his leg and thigh. A nerve in his calf was also damaged.