War News for Saturday, May 07, 2011

Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: A cameraman working for the Iraqi interior ministry was shot dead southwest of Baghdad on Friday, a security source said. “Jassim Fakhri was shot down when unidentified gunmen opened their silencer gun fire on a vehicle he was driving at al-Dora al-Sayiddiya intersection, southwest of Baghdad,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: Five civilians were wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off northeast of Baghdad on Friday, a local security source said. “A roadside IED went off near al-Shohadaa Shiite mosque in Ur neighborhood, northeast of Baghdad, leaving five persons wounded,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#3: “An explosive charge, stuck to a civilian car, blew off late Friday night, in southern Baghdad’s Saydiya district, wounding 3 civilians and causing damage to a number of nearby shops,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#4: He said that another explosive charge, planted on the roadside in Sab’e al-bour area, northwest of Baghdad, also on Friday night, targeted against al-Sahwa patrols, wounding 12 persons, including 8 al-Sahwa elements, and causing damage for a number of civilian cars.

#5: Three Iraqi policemen have been injured, when trying to dismantle an explosive charge, stuck to a cop’s car in the Mechanics District, of southern Baghdad’s Daura area on Saturday, a security source said.

#6: Gunmen in a speeding car, using silenced weapons, killed a policeman in Baghdad's central Karrada district late on Friday, an Interior Ministry source said.

#7: The driver of Iraq’s President advisor was seriously wounded due to a shooting using muted weapons as he was passing in Al Alawi region, central Baghdad, a source told Alsumaria.


Diwaniya:
#1: Three Katusha rockets fell close to the U.S. Army Camp Echo, west of southern Iraq’s Diwaniya city on Friday, but losses were not known, an Iraqi military source said. “The U.S. Echo Camp, 3 km to the west of Diwaniya city had been target for 3 Katusha rocket attacks,” the military source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency, adding that the losses were not known.


Babil Prv:
#1: Anti-explosives unit force thwarted a car bombing near Babel’s Rescue Police directorate in Babel Province. A bomb exploded inside a garbage can near the police directorate. Major crimes director general Major Raafat Al Salami told Alsumarianews that the explosion damaged two cars without causing any casualties.


Mosul:
#1: In Nineveh, unknown gunmen killed a civilian on Friday in Al Nahrawan District, western Mosul.


Al Anbar Prv:
#1: A beheaded body was found on Friday by policemen in north of Falluja, a police source said. “A police patrol found in al-Sajr region, north of Falluja, a bullet-riddled beheaded body in north of Falluja,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: Gunmen launched at attack Saturday on the compound of the governor of Kandahar province - a former Taliban stronghold where international and Afghan forces are trying to establish security and government. An Associated Press reporter near the compound in Kandahar city, the provincial capital, said the gunfire started shortly after midday. The shooting was focused at the back of the compound, near the governor's residence. At least two larger blasts were also heard. There were no immediate reports of casualties and it's not clear if the assailants had managed to enter the compound. As the fighting continued, police blocked journalists from getting close to the site of the violence.

Taliban militants armed with guns and rocket-propelled grenades on Saturday attacked the office of the governor of Afghanistan’s Kandahar province, with casualties reported. “Small-arms fire is still going on. Two RPGs (rocket-propelled grenades) have been fired onto the building so far. The northern and eastern sides of the compound are under direct attack,” provincial spokesman Zalmay Ayubi told AFP. He added: “We have reports of people injured, but no word on fatal casualties so far.” The Taliban claimed responsibility for the assault.

#2: Forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have killed a civilian in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar. The US-led soldiers killed the Afghan civilian and took two others away with them in an operation on Saturday, a Press TV correspondent reported.

War News for Friday, May 06, 2011

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED attack in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, May 5th.


Hudson family tries to reverse ruling of suicide for Marine


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: A group of unknown gunmen, using guns with silencers, have assassinated an officer in the Iraqi Defense Ministry, carrying a Lt.Brigadier rank on Thursday, east of Baghdad, a security source said. “An armed group, using guns with silencers, has assassinated Lt. Brigadier, Moayed Khalil Abdul-Aziz, who works in the Training Division of the Iraqi Defense Ministry,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. The security source said that “the armed men had followed the victim, while leaving his house in Jamila district, east of Baghdad, shooting him dead and escaping to an unknown destination.”

#2: Four civilians were wounded on Thursday by an improvised explosive device blast in southeast of Baghdad, a security source said. "The bomb exploded in al-Maahad street in al-Zaafaraniya region, southeast of Baghdad, injuring four passing civilians," the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Kirkuk:
#1: Two civilians were wounded late Thursday by a sticky bomb explosion in central Kirkuk, according to a local police chief. “A bomb, stuck to a civilian car, exploded at 8:30 pm on Thursday in central Kirkuk, wounding two civilians, one of them is in critical condition after cutting his leg,” Colonel Taha Salah al-Din told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: “Another explosion took place at the same time, when a bomb, attached to a private car of an army officer, went off in al-Baath neighborhood,” he added. “The blast left no casualties, but caused material damage to the car,” he said.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: At least eight people have been killed in the latest unauthorized US drone attack on Pakistan's tribal district of North Waziristan. A senior Pakistani security official was quoted by AFP as saying that eight missiles were fired in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan.

#2: At least eight people were killed early Friday morning as unknown militants fired rockets at the people doing exercises at a soccer ground in the Hazara town of Quetta, a capital city of Balochistan province in southwest Pakistan, reported local English TV channel Express. According to the local media reports, the attack took place at about 7 a.m. local time when six to eight unknown militants riding in two cars attacked the people who were doing morning exercises in a soccer ground in the city. The militants first fired indiscriminately at the people in the ground, then fired three rockets at them, said eyewitnesses. The attackers fled the scene after a brief fire exchange with the police. Police have cordoned off the area and the dead and injured have been shifted to nearby hospital.

War News for Thursday, May 05, 2011

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from a non-battle related injury in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, May 4th.


US, France eye faster Afghanistan exit


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: A roadside bomb wounded a man when it went off near his armoured car in Baghdad's Abu Nawas street, an Interior Ministry source said.

#2: A bomb placed in a garbage bin wounded two people in al-Nidhal street in central Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said.

An Iraqi civilian has been killed and three others were injured in an explosive charge blast in Baghdad on Thursday, a security source said. “An explosive charge blew up central Baghdad’s al-Nidhal Street, killing a civilian and wounding three others, early on Thursday,” the security source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Mussayab:
#1: A roadside bomb went off near a house in the town of Mussayab, about 60 km (40 miles) south of Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said.


Hilla:
#1: A suicide car bomber crashed his vehicle into a barrier outside a police building in central Iraq on Thursday morning, killing 18 policemen and wounding dozens more, a local councilman said. A police official said the bomber hit when the officers were assembling in a square in front of the police building for a shift change in the city of Hillah, about 95 kilometres south of the capital Baghdad. A member of the Hillah city council, Mahmoud al-Murshidi, who spoke to The Associated Press from the hospital, said 18 were killed and 43 people were wounded in the bombing. He said all the casualties were policemen.


Tuz Khurmato:
#1: A roadside bomb went off near a Kurdish security forces patrol, killing two security members and wounding four, including two civilians, in the town of Tuz Khurmato, 170 km (105 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.


Mosul:
#1: Three people were wounded late on Wednesday when a booby-trapped doll exploded inside a restaurant in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.

#2: A policeman has been killed in a blast of an explosive charge, stuck to his car, in northern Iraq’s Mosul city on Thursday, a security source said. “An explosive charge blew up in a car belonging to a policemen in Ninewa Police Directorate in northern Mosul, killing him on the spot,” the security source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: In the volatile southern province of Kandahar, a NATO-led International Security Assistance Forces airstrike killed four rebels, a statement issued by the governor's office said. "Based on intelligence tips, the bodies of four insurgents were discovered in Arghestan district," it said, adding that no causalities among civilians or government forces were reported.

#2: In neighbouring Helmand province, five insurgents were killed when a group of militants attacked three Afghan police checkpoints in Greshik district overnight, the governor's office said in a statement. There were no police casualties.

#3: A base for South Korea''s aid workers and troops in Afghanistan has been shelled, but no injuries were reported, a military official said today. Four artillery shells dropped in and around the base compound in Charika, a city in the northern Afghan province of Parwan on Wednesday, according to the South Korean military official. "Two of the shells appear to have dropped inside the base, with one of them landing outside and the other detonating in midair. We have yet to confirm who was responsible for the attack," he said, adding that there were no injuries or damages to properties.


DoD: Cpl. Kevin W. White

War News for Wednesday, May 04, 2011

The DoD is reporting a new death previously unreported by the military. Sgt. Adam D. Craig died from a non-combat related illness at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md, USA, on Tuesday, May 4th. was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.


NATO containers cause Rs 122bn damage to roads


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: In the Al-Shaab neighbourhood of north Baghdad, an employee of the department of transport was assassinated by unknown attackers using guns with silencers, an official from the interior ministry said.

#2: Police officer Abdulhussein Jassem was killed in similar fashion in the Qahira district of north Baghdad.

#3: At least 9 Iraqi civilians have been killed and 27 others injured in a booby-trapped car explosion in southern Baghdad’s Daura district on Tuesday night, a security source said on Wednesday. “A booby-trapped car, parked on the roadside in southern Baghdad’s Daura district, blew off late Tuesday night, killing 9 people and wounding 27 others,” the security source said.

#4: several other mortar shells fell on the headquarters of Iraq’s previous General Security building in east Baghdad’s Baladiyat District, now used as a base for joint U.S. troops and Iraqi police forces, but losses were not known.”

#5: A sticky bomb attached to a vehicle carrying Iraq's grain board director, Hassan Ibrahim, wounded him and a passer-by and killed his driver when it went off in southeastern Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said.


Karbala:
#1: three civilians were killed in roadside bombings south of Baghdad, medical and security sources said. The civilians were killed in explosions around 8:00 am (0500 GMT) in the village of Al-Khanafsa, north of the central Shiite shrine city of Karbala, a police officer said. It was not immediately clear who was the target of the attack which also wounded three civilians, according to Jamal Abdullah, spokesman for Karbala provincial health services.


Basra:
#1: An Iraqi Integrity Commission employee has been injured in an explosive charge blast in southern Iraq’s city of Basra, the city’s police media director said on Tuesday. “An explosive charge blew up close to the house of an employee of Basra’s Integrity Commission, wounding him and causing damage to his car,” Lt. Brigadier, Abdul-Karim al-Zaidy told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: Meanwhile, a Basra security source said that the U.S. base in Basra Airport had been attacked by 5 Katyusha rockets, causing no human casualties.


Taji:
#1: The source also said that “a number of mortar shells struck northern Baghdad’s Taji Camp. but losses were not known.”


Irbil Prv:
#1: One civilian was killed and three children were wounded in a landmine explosion in northeast of Arbil, a security source said on Tuesday. "A land mine exploded today in a rural area in Souraa district, northeast of Arbil, killing a civilian and wounding three children," the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Kirkuk:
#1: Three of north Iraq Kirkuk’s Traffic Policemen, once of them with major rank, have been injured in a sticking explosive charge blast in the officer’s car south of the city, a Kirkuk Police Director said on Wednesday. “An explosive charge blew off on Wednesday morning in a car, driven by a major in Kirkuk’s Traffic Police Directorate, wounding him and two of his guards, early on Wednesday, also causing severe damage to his car,” Lt. Brigadier, Shirzad Mofry, told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Mosul:
#1: Gunmen stopped two trucks and killed their drivers west of Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.

#2: A sticky bomb attached to a vehicle killed its driver in northern Mosul, police said.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: NATO-led forces in Afghanistan killed a civilian and six Taliban militants in the country's south-east, officials said Wednesday. NATO special forces were dropped by helicopter to raid a house Tuesday night in Zurmat district of Paktia province, said Rohullah Samoon, the provincial governor's spokesman. 'Six Taliban fighters and one civilian were killed and 10 other civilians were wounded,' Samoon said. Three men, three women and four children, who were injured in the raid, were taken to hospital by the NATO forces, he said. In a statement, NATO confirmed that 'during an operation, insurgents engaged the security forces and the Afghan and coalition forces responded.' NATO said the operation was part of a search for a leader of the Haqqani terrorist network who had plans to attack the Paktiya governor. One Afghan woman was killed in the battle, said the statement, which put the number of injured civilians at seven.

#2: An oil tanker, carrying fuel for the US-led NATO forces stationed in Afghanistan, was blown up near Ali Masjid in a bomb blast here on Tuesday, administration sources said. The oil tanker was gutted completely, besides some nearby houses on the bank of the main road. Similarly, a general store was also destroyed due to a powerful bomb blast near Charwazgai checkpost in Landikotal on Monday night. However, no loss of human life was reported in both the blasts.

Militants blew up three oil tankers supplying fuel to Nato forces in Afghanistan near Torkham border in Khyber tribal region on Tuesday. Eyewitness said that a blast occurred in an oil tanker due to which two other vehicles, parked nearby, caught fire and gutted completely. A local Taliban faction, Abdullah Ezam Brigade, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

#3: Meanwhile, seven militants of Lashkar-i-Islami, a Bara-based militant outfit, were killed in a raid on its hideouts in Tirah valley of Khyber Agency on Tuesday night, sources said. They said that volunteers of Zakhakhel tribal lashkar and members of Lashkar-i-Islami were trading fire with each other when army helicopters targeted the later and killed seven of its men. Sources said that separately one person was killed and four received injuries during clashes between Zakhakhel and LI.

#4: An explosion hit the Afghan capital of Kabul on late Tuesday evening, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on early Wednesday morning. "There was an explosion in Kabul, it was in the vicinity of TV Hill," an ISAF spokesperson said. TV Hill is an area in Kabul which provides stunning views of the city below. The midnight explosion was heard in a large area of Kabul, but the cause and exact location was not immediately clear. CNN reported it was a rocket attack which targeted a police station, but ISAF could not confirm that. There were no immediate reports of casualties and, according to officials, the explosion did not target an ISAF convoy and no coalition service members were involved.

#5: Nine police officers were wounded in two bomb attacks in western Afghanistan, police said Wednesday. The attacks occurred in Herat province, said Brig. Gen. Esa Iftikhari, a police commander. The officers were injured after driving near an area where remote-controlled bombs had been placed.


DoD: Sgt. Adam D. Craig

War News for Tuesday, May 03, 2011

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday, May 3rd.


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: In Baghdad, a female employee in Baghdad municipality was killed when a sticky bomb attached to her car detonated on a highway in Doura district in southern the capital, an Interior Ministry source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

#2: In a separate incident, a roadside bomb went off near a police patrol in Doura district, wounding a policeman and two civilians, the source said.

#3: In downtown Baghdad, a civilian was wounded in a roadside bomb explosion in the busy al-Naser Square, the source added.

#4: Two civilians were killed in an armed attack by unknown gunmen in Al Hurriya District, northwestern Baghdad.

#5: In Al Youssifiya region, southern Baghdad, a police source told Alsumarianews that gunmen killed an employee at Housing and Construction Ministry.


Diyala Prv:
#1: In Diyala, an Awakening Council group member was shot dead by gunmen in al-Hashmiyat area in northwest of the provincial capital city of Baquba, some 65 km northeast of Baghdad, a source from Diyala's operations command told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

#2: Separately, gunmen wounded Shakir Mahmoud, an Iraqi army officer, in the town of al-Maqdadiyah, some 40 km northeast of Baquba, the source said.


Kut:
#1: Unknown gunmen killed a civilian in southern Kut on Monday, according to a security source. “Unknown gunmen attacked a civilian in al-Falahiya neighborhood, southern Kut, using light weapons, killing him instantly,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Mosul:
#1: A civilian was killed on Monday by gunmen in western Mosul, a security source said. “Unknown gunmen opened fire on a civilian in front of his house in al-Islah al-Zerai neighborhood, western Mosul,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: The Police Director of Nimrud township in northern Iraq’s Ninewa Province, has been killed in an explosive charge blast on Tuesday, a Ninewa police source said.

“Nimrud’s Police Director, Lt. Brigadier, Eid al-Jibouri, has been killed while on his work, in an explosive charge blast against his motorcade in Nimrud township, 40 km to the northeast of Mosul,” the police source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency, adding that the blast had wounded his driver and four of his bodyguards.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: Three US-led alliance troops have been injured in southern Afghanistan after militants destroyed their convoy in an explosion, a report says. The bomb blast took place on Tuesday, a Press TV correspondent report. The nationalities of the soldiers and the exact location of the attack are still unknown.

#2: Also on Tuesday, a NATO air strike in Afghanistan's central Ghazni province left at least ten Afghan security guards dead. The killed men apparently worked for a private security firm in charge of providing security assistance to NATO convoys. NATO has confirmed the airstrike, but says initial reports suggest that the strike targeted militants. However, Ghazni police say no militants were involved in the incident.

Police say that at least five Afghan guards were killed in a NATO air strike along a highway in southern Afghanistan. Police commanders in Ghazni Province said the armed guards were escorting a supply convoy to NATO bases in southern Afghanistan when they were hit.

#3: Afghan and NATO forces have killed at least 25 Taliban militants in north-eastern Afghanistan, a senior official said Tuesday. The NATO-led forces started the ground and air operations in the north-eastern province of Nooristan on Monday, provincial governor Jamaluddin Badr said. 'According to our initial reports, at least 25 militants among whom were foreign fighters were killed in Bargmatal district, which borders Pakistan,' Badr said. The militants had been using the targeted Olagon area in the west of Bargmatal district as a command centre, the governor said.

#4: A Pakistani air force jet fighter crashed Tuesday afternoon in the Kot Shakir area of Jhang district in the country's eastern province of Punjab, reported local English TV Channel Express. The report quoted an official with Pakistan Air Force (PAF) as saying that a Mirage combat aircraft of PAF was on its routine rehearsal flight in the Jhang district of Punjab province when the pilot lost its control over the plane due to some technical problem.

War News for Monday, May 02, 2011

Iraq's oil export revenue at record high this year

April is deadliest month for U.S. troops in Iraq since 2009


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: A roadside bomb planted near a police station in Baghdad's Shiite bastion of Sadr City detonated and hit a passing minibus carrying passengers, killing three people and wounding 14 others, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

#2: In a separate incident, a roadside bomb went off outside a restaurant in Abu Nawas Street in central Baghdad, wounding three people, the source said.


Diyala Prv:
#1: A policeman has been killed in a sticking explosive charge blast under his car in Baaquba city, the center of northeast Iraq’s Diala Province on Sunday, a Baaquba police source said. “A policeman of Baaquba Police has been killed in a blast of an explosive charge, stuck to his car in Baaquba on Sunday night,” the police source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. The police source said that the victim was “a brother of high-ranking police officer in Diala Province, who was probably killed for that reason.”

#2: The Director of Passport & Nationality Department of northeast Iraq’s Diala Province, has escaped an assassination attempt, when an explosive charge blew off close to his house in Baaquba city, wounding 3 persons and causing damage to the house, a Diala police source said on Monday. “An explosive charge blew up close to the house of Diala’s Passport & Nationality Department’s Director, Brigadier Kamal al-Tamimy in central Baaquba on Monday, wounding 3 persons, including a woman, who were near to the venue of the blast and caused severe damage to the house,” the police source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Samarra:
#1: A group of unknown armed men have opened fire on a tribal chieftain in Samarra city of Salah al-Din Province, seriously wounding him, a Samarra police source said on Sunday. “A group of unknown gunmen have opened machinegun fire on one of Samarra’s leading tribal chieftains, Sheikh Ahmed Hacham al-Darrajy, in front of his house in east Samarra’s al-Huweish district, seriously injuring him in the chest,” the police source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Al Anbar Prv:
#1: Two civilians have been killed in an explosion that took place in a fuel store in west Iraq’s Falluja city on Monday, an Anbar police source said. “The two civilians were killed, when they tried to open the door of the fuel store, that blew off due to high temperature,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: Romania’s National Defense Ministry announced that three Romanian soldiers were injured on Sunday morning in Afghanistan after their tank was attacked with an explosive device. The three were evacuated to the Kandahar military hospital. A fourth military, also in the vehicle had superficial wounds and resumed his activity in the Lagman base. According to information, the incident took place on Sunday, around 5:30 AM when a tank that was in a mission with militaries from the Battalion 26 infantry Neagoe Basarab on A1 highway in Zabul province, Afghanistan was attacked with an improvised explosive device. Even though the quantity of explosives was very high, the quality of the cars used by NATO forces ensured the life of the Romanian military. The four military involved in the deflagration were George Olteanu, Marius Apostol, Daniel Riza and Nicolae Barbu.

#2: Four Pakistani police officials have been killed and six others injured after gunmen attacked vehicles carrying oil for NATO forces in Afghanistan. The attack took place near a roadside restaurant near Attock, some 60 kilometers from the capital Islamabad, on Sunday. "The gunmen first opened fire on the tankers and after fleeing they attacked a nearby police post in which three police constables and one sub inspector were killed," AFP quoted local police official Sajid Mehmood as saying.

#3: A suicide bomber Monday attacked a joint patrol of NATO and Afghan forces in southern Afghanistan, killing a policeman, officials said. The bomber rode a motorbike towards the patrol, opened fire and killed one policeman, the Helmand governor's office said in a statement. The attack took place in Sangin district. The bomber detonated his explosives-packed vest when he came close to the patrol, the statement said. There were no causalities among the foreign forces, it added.

#3: A Pakistani army helicopter was feared shot down in northern Pakistan early Monday morning, causing at least one dead and two injured, local media reported. According to local Urdu TV channel Geo, the incident took place at about 1:20 a.m. local time in a hilly area of Abbotabad, a small town lying some 60 kilometers north of the country's capital city Islamabad. The report quoted eyewitnesses as saying that heavy firings were heard before the helicopter fell down. It is not known how many people were aboard the plane which is reportedly capable of carrying eight to 10 persons. One local Urdu TV channel Ary reported that at least one person was killed and another two were injured in the crash.


DoD: Spc. Preston J. Dennis

DoD: Pfc. Robert M. Friese

News of the Day for Sunday, May 1, 2011

Reported Security Incidents

Kirkuk

Colonel Nouzad Talabani, a senior officer in the intelligence service of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, is assassinated. This is interesting in a couple of ways. First, despite the creation of a Kurdistan regional government in 1992, and the demotion of the PUK and the KDP from rival regional governments to political parties, it turns out the PUK retains it's own security force and bestows military ranks. Second, it's interesting that somebody would want to kill this guy. Hmmm. AFP has additional details.

Mosul

Suicide attack on an Iraqi army patrol kills 7 people, 4 soldiers and 3 civilians, and injures 15.

Baquba

Sticky bomb attached to a teacher's car kills him. Xinhua also reports a 6 year old child is injured by a roadside bomb just north of the city.

Armed men storm the home of a Sunni cleric and kill him, his wife and child.

Gunmen wearing police uniforms invade the home of four brothers who were Sahwa members and kill them all.

Tarmiyah, north of Baghdad

Roadside bomb injures 2 people.

Baghdad

Bomb planted in a commercial area injures 3 people. Separately, a roadside bomb in southern Baghdad injures 4.

Other News of the Day

Happy Mission Accomplished! Day. (See the Quotes of the Day.)

Iraqi Parliament approves $400 million payment to Americans who claim they were mistreated during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. According to Xinhua, "The controversial agreement which was signed between the two countries on Sept. 2, 2010, stated to pay 400 million dollars compensation for hundreds of American citizens who claimed they were mistreated when they were held hostages in 1990 during the run-up to the 1991 Gulf War. The agreement is highly sensitive for many Iraqis who see themselves as victims to Saddam Hussein as well as the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, which they see (invasion) as illegal since it was not clearly authorized by the UN Security Council." You'd think there would be some coverage of this in U.S. media but I could only find a Chinese source.

Afghanistan update

A 12 year old suicide bomber detonates an explosive vest in a marketplace in Paktika Province, killing 4 people and injuring 12. Sheesh.

AFP also reports incidents in Ghazni. Taliban ambush a police vehicle, and 2 police and 2 civilians are killed in the exchange of gunfire. Also, 13 civilians are injured by a bomb parked in front of Ghazni police headquarters. Five are said to be in critical condition.

Taliban announce the start of a spring offensive.

Police chief of Badghdis province says Afghan and NATO forces have killed 17 militants.

NYT's Rubin and Risen report on the construction of the Gardez-Khost Highway, which has yet to be completed but has already cost U.S. taxpayers $121 million, and is expected to cost more than $50 million more, much of it paid as protection money to people who are probably using it to finance insurgency.

The vast expenses and unsavory alliances surrounding the highway have become a parable of the corruption and mismanagement that turns so many well-intended development efforts in Afghanistan into sinkholes for the money of American taxpayers, even nine years into the war. The road is one of the most expensive construction projects per mile undertaken by U.S.A.I.D., which has built or rehabilitated hundreds of miles of Afghan highways and has faced delays and cost overruns on similar projects, according to the special inspector general for Afghan reconstruction. . . . The possibility that American taxpayers’ money has been going to someone with ties to an insurgency that has killed American soldiers and Afghan civilians is just one of the many problems of the Gardez-Khost Highway.

Quotes of the Day

He won the war. He was an effective commander. Everybody recognizes that, I believe, except a few critics. Women like a guy who's president. Check it out. The women like this war. I think we like having a hero as our president. It's simple.

Out bounded the cocky, rule-breaking, daredevil flyboy, a man navigating the Highway to the Danger Zone, out along the edges where he was born to be, the further on the edge, the hotter the intensity. He flashed that famous all-American grin as he swaggered around the deck of the aircraft carrier in his olive flight suit, ejection harness between his legs, helmet tucked under his arm, awestruck crew crowding around. Maverick was back, cooler and hotter than ever, throttling to the max with joystick politics. Compared to Karl Rove's ''revvin' up your engine'' myth-making cinematic style, Jerry Bruckheimer's movies look like Lizzie McGuire. This time Maverick didn't just nail a few bogeys and do a 4G inverted dive with a MiG-28 at a range of two meters. This time the Top Gun wasted a couple of nasty regimes, and promised this was just the beginning.

Chris Matthews, and Maureen Dowd, May 1, 2003