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| Iraq |
| Weekly Wrapup in Iraq (State Department Summary) |
| 2007-04-27 |
| Fardh al-Qanun Efforts Against Extremists Continue: •Iraqi Security Forces and Coalition efforts to reduce the violence continue as Operation Fardh al-Qanun enters its ninth week. Joint Security Stations, manned by Coalition and Iraqi forces, continue to stand up throughout the city and establish a permanent presence in troubled neighborhoods. Another initiative to improve security is the emplacement of temporary concrete barriers around Baghdad neighborhoods that have experienced high levels of violence. •Attacks against Baghdad civilians have declined 50% over the last six months. In November 2006, 41% of all attacks reported in the city were directed against civilians; however, during the month of April, only 20% targeted the civilian population. •While attacks have continued to decline over the first nine weeks of the new security plan, lethal high-profile attacks have continued, highlighted by the four vehicle-borne improvised explosive bombings in the Baghdad area April 18. Al-Qaida in Iraq, who likely conducted those bombings, continues to indiscriminately target civilians to undermine the GOI and dishearten the Iraqi people. •To date, more than 200,000 patrols have been conducted in support of Operation Fardh al-Qanun. More than 300 caches have been uncovered and more than 800 improvised explosive devices have been found. Suicide Vehicle Bomb Strikes U.S. Military Outpost, Killing Nine: •A suicide car bomber struck a U.S. military outpost north of Baghdad, killing nine soldiers and wounding 20 others, in the deadliest attack on American forces in 16 months. •The bomber exploded his vehicle against a patrol base in Diyala province April 23, bringing the U.S. military death toll for April so far to 70, according to the U.S. military. Fifteen of the wounded were later able to resumetheir duties, but the attack was still the bloodiest since December 1, 2005. Britain Turns over Logistics Base to the ISF: •The Shaibah logistics base, once the main center of British military operations in Iraq, was turned over to the Iraqi national army April 24 for use as a training base. The brief ceremony by British and Iraqi forces was the latest example of the Coalition’s efforts to give Iraqi forces control over some parts of Iraq as British forces plan to begin withdrawing from southern Iraq where most of them are based. •Two other British bases -al-Saie and Shatt al-Arab -were turned over to Iraqi forces in Basrah, Iraq’s second largest city, in the last month. Fourth Fallujah City Councilman Killed in Two Years: •Fallujah city council chairman Sami Abdul-Amir al-Jumaili, a critic of al-Qaida who took the job after his three predecessors were assassinated, was killed April 21. The 65-year-old Sunni shaykh was the fourth city council chairman to be killed in 14 months as insurgents target fellow Sunnis willing to cooperate with the U.S. and Iraqi forces. Abdul-Amir’s predecessor, Abbas Ali Hussein, was shot to death February 2. Iraq’s Yazidi Minority Demands Protection After Killings: •Sectarian tensions are high in the Mosul area of northern Iraq following the killing of 23 members of the Yazidi minority (a small, ancient heterodox sect who are ethnic Kurds) and following the stoning death of a Yazidi woman who recently converted to Islam to marry a Sunni Muslim man. Criminal Proceedings Begin at New Rule of Law Complex: •On April 2 in Baghdad, criminal proceedings were initiated in a newly opened and secure Rule of Law Complex, Mujama Siyadat al-Qanun, against an alleged al-Qaida suspect accused of killing scores of civilians, and against a Shi’a national police officer accused of torturing and abusing mostly Sunni detainees while in his custody. Prime Minister Maliki Receives Promise of Support from Egypt During Visit: •During a visit to Cairo by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif pledged to continue supporting Iraq in order to restore peace and stability in the country. Prime Minister Nazif added that “Egypt stands strongly on the side of Iraq and by every means backs it in achieving peace and stability.” UNICEF Launches Immunization Campaign: •In coordination with UNICEF, Iraqi health workers launched a large-scale immunization drive this week aimed at protecting 3.9 million infants with the MMR vaccine against measles, mumps, and rubella. I know you'd all want to know what the UN is doing! Secretary Rice Urges Iran to Take Part in Iraq’s Neighbors Conference: •Secretary Rice urged Iran to take part in Iraq’s Neighbors Conference next month, telling the Financial Times it would be a “missed opportunity” if Tehran fails to attend. Ambassador Satterfield Urges Iraq Neighbors on Debt Relief: •While talking to reporters in Kuwait, Ambassador Satterfield urged Iraq’s neighbors to invest in the country and called on oil-rich Gulf states to fulfill their pledge to forgive billions of dollars in debt owed by the former regime of Saddam Hussein. Islamic Cabinet Named by Sunni Insurgent Group: •An Internet video posted April 19 by the Islamic State of Iraq announced an “Islamic Cabinet”for Iraq and named Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, the head of al-Qaida in Iraq, as “minister of war.”The message came shortly after the Sunni insurgent group posted another video showing the execution of 20 men said to be members of the Iraqi military and security forces. •Shaykh Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Falahi was named as the emir’s “first minister,”while other positions included ministers of information, “prisoners and martyrs,”agriculture and health. Prisoner and Martyrs is one ministry? |
| Posted by:Bobby |