BAGHDAD, Iraq, Sept. 21, 2006
Iraq: Some Bombers Aren't Volunteers
Truck Drivers, Others, Allegedly Kidnapped, Then Released In Rigged Vehicles
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Iraqi police policemen secure the site of a car bombing in western Baghdad Sept., 19 2006 which killed two people and wounded 11 others. Iraq's Defense Ministry believes insurgents are kidnapping drivers and rigging their cars with bombs. (AFP/Getty Images)
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A car burning in Baghdad, Sept. 18, 2006. (AP)
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In what appears to be a new tactic for the insurgency, the ministry said the kidnap victims do not know their cars have been loaded with explosives when they are released.
The ministry issued a statement saying that first "a motorist is kidnapped with his car. They then booby trap the car without the driver knowing. Then the kidnapped driver is released and threatened to take a certain road."
The kidnappers follow the car and when the unwitting victim "reaches a checkpoint, a public place, or an army or police patrol, the criminal terrorists following the driver detonate the car from a distance," the Defense Ministry statement said.
There was no immediate comment from the U.S. military. In the past, U.S. officials have said insurgents often tape or handcuff a suicide driver's hands to a car, or bind his foot to the gas pedal, to ensure that he does not back out at the last minute.
Although roadside bombs are the main weapon used by insurgents, suicide car bombers are designed to maximize casualties and sow fear among the population.
According to the Washington-based Brookings Institution, there have been 343 suicide car bombings causing multiple deaths in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.
In other developments:
Meanwhile, coalition forces moved ahead with plans to turn security responsibilities over to Iraqi troops by the end of 2007, as Italy formally handed the reins of the relatively quiet southern Dhi Qar province.
It was the second province of Iraq's 18 to be turned over to local control, and paves the way for most of Italy's 1,600 troops to return home by the end of the year — a campaign promise by new Prime Minister Romano Prodi.
The overall U.S. strategy calls for coalition forces to redeploy to larger bases and let Iraqis become responsible for their security in specific regions. The larger bases can act in a support or reserve role to Iraqi troops should they need help. No time frame has been set for the eventual drawdown of troops from Iraq.
©MMVI CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
