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Topic: 180 people killed on Wednesday in series of bombin (Read 263 times)

Rhune
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180 people killed on Wednesday in series of bombin
« on: Apr 18^th, 2007, 6:47pm »

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Iraq orders arrest of top Army officer after deadly attacks
POSTED: 4:51 p.m. EDT, April 18, 2007

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has ordered the arrest of a top army officer after a string of bombings that killed more than 180 people Wednesday, the prime minister's office announced.

A written statement said the decision was made because of "the weakness of security measures put in place to protect civilians in al-Sadriya," the central Baghdad area where most of the deaths occurred.

Insurgent bombers launched the series of attacks across Baghdad, reflecting the stiff challenges posed by what has been a resilient insurgency. (Watch as death toll climbs after attacks in Iraq )

The Interior Ministry said the dead and injured included:

122 dead, 150 wounded in Sadriya market in central Baghdad;

28 dead, 44 wounded in an attack near an Iraqi Army checkpoint at one of the entrances to Sadr City, the official said;

11 civilians were killed and 13 others wounded when a parked car bomb detonated in central Baghdad's Karrada district. The car was parked near a hospital and a market;

Four police officers were killed and 6 civilians wounded when a suicide car bomber exploded at an Iraqi police checkpoint in southern Baghdad;

Four people were killed and eight were wounded by a bomber targeting a police patrol near a checkpoint in Saidiya, in southwestern Baghdad. Two of those killed were police and the other two were civilians;

Two civilians were killed and 9 others wounded when a roadside bomb detonated at a busy intersection in central Baghdad.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military was on the move against insurgents.

Coalition raids in and around the Iraqi cities of Falluja, Taji, and Mosul on Wednesday led to the killings of six insurgents and the detention of more than 40 others, the U.S. military said.

Death squads
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates answered questions earlier on Wednesday about Iraq's instability.

During an appearance before the American Chamber of Commerce in Cairo, Egypt, stressed that he believes political reconciliation is the key to taming the current instability in Iraq.

"I think that there is progress being made. I believe that faster progress can be made in the political reconciliation process in Iraq," Gates said. He said there could be progress once "sectarian" factions "decide to live peacefully with one another."

Gates explained that there aren't "thousands of people in the streets in Iraq trying to kill each other."

"What you have are armed gangs of death squads going around killing people. You have large vehicle-borne IEDs that are being used by al Qaeda to try to bring massive casualties to the Shia in hope of stoking sectarian violence."

And, he said, "you have a Baathist insurgency."

"These are not mass movements." he said, "and so if there is a political reconciliation, the Iraqi security forces, with some of our help and that of our coalition partners, I think, are in a position to control both the insurgency, the death squads and al Qaeda."

But, he emphasized, "we need for all of the parties involved to help with the process of reconciliation."

In Maysan province, officials said that the transfer of security -- in what has been a relatively quiet district -- "demonstrates another step towards a stable and secure Iraq."

Maysan is a largely rural stretch located in the Shiite heartland in the south and it borders Iran.

A statement from U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker, British Ambassador to Iraq Dominic Asquith, and Gen. David Petraeus said, "Maysan is the fourth of 18 provinces to be transitioned and this reflects Iraq's continued steps toward a capability to govern and protect itself and its citizens as a sovereign nation."

Military: Insurgents killed
Meanwhile coalition raids in and around the Iraqi cities of Falluja, Taji, and Mosul led to the killings of six insurgents and the detention of more than 40 others, the U.S. military said.

Troops raided several buildings in a rural area northeast of Falluja, killing five suspected terrorists, wounding four more and capturing another 30 terror suspects, according to the U.S. military. Falluja is located in Anbar province.

"Coalition forces raided a group of buildings known to be used by terrorists and found explosive materials in one of the buildings," the military statement said. "A helicopter used precision-guided munitions to strike the contents of the building. Secondary explosions at the site confirmed the material inside was explosive."

Four of the insurgents were taken to military medical facilities to be treated for wounds, the military said.

Although some women and children were present, none of them were injured, according to the military.

An "armed terrorist" was killed and five insurgents were detained west of Taji -- which is near Baghdad.

"The suspected terrorists are believed to be tied to al Qaeda in Iraq and a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device network known to use chlorine in its attacks. They are also allegedly involved in facilitating foreign terrorist movements," the military said in a news release.

In Mosul, in northern Iraq, troops detained "three suspected terrorists with ties to the al Qaeda in Iraq network."

Further south, British forces transferred security control to Iraqi troops in Maysan province, a sign that Iraq is taking another step toward "self-reliance."

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh, Octavia Nasr and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.

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