3rd item broken out from that Guardian article, done for discussion purposes. EFL and a re-written lead.
Aquila al-Hashimi, one of three women on the 25-member Governing Council and strong candidate to become Iraq’s representative at the United Nations, underwent surgery again following an assassination attempt. Al-Hashimi, a Shiite Muslim and career diplomat, was seriously wounded by six gunmen in a pickup truck who chased her in her car near her home on Saturday. The assailants escaped.
| They're busy congratulating each other right now on their bravery for shooting up a woman... |
Al-Hashimi underwent a second operation and was reported in critical but stable condition at a military hospital on the grounds of one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces where the Coalition Provisional Authority has its headquarters. On Sunday, Douglas Brand, a British adviser to the Iraqi police, said the coalition officials were helping Iraqi police with the investigation and appealed to the public to come forward with any information. ``This was a cowardly attack. She has undergone two operations. She remains in critical but stable condition at the hospital,’’ Brand said. ``Anybody who has any further information to offer us, to help us in the investigation, to hunt down those who committed this crime, we ask them to contact the Iraqi police service locally or the coalition forces.’’
The Governing Council president, Ahmad Chalabi, blamed Saddam loyalists for the shooting. The attempt against al-Hashimi was the first against a member of the council since it was appointed by U.S. authorities in July. Al-Hashimi had been preparing to leave for a key U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York on Tuesday, during which the Iraqi interim government is expected to lobby to represent the country in the world organization. Major U.S. allies are urging Washington to give the United Nations a significant role in bringing stability to this fractured country.
Al-Hashimi also was a functionary in Saddam’s government. No telling who held a grudge. |