New Baghdad Bomb; Fate Of Abducted Unclear
Doubts Now About Earlier Report That Most Abductees Were Freed
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Play CBS Video Video Brazen Kidnapping In Baghdad Dozens of people were kidnapped at an Iraqi Education Ministry building. As Elizabeth Palmer reports, the kidnappings raise new questions about the government's commitment to reining in militias.
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Video Academia Under Attack In Iraq Zainab Al-Suwaij, executive director of the American Islamic Congress, talks with Katie Couric about the kidnapping at Iraq's Higher Education Ministry and rising levels of violence in the country.
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Video Mass Kidnapping In Iraq Armed men stormed a government research facility and kidnapped up to 150 people in Iraq. Elizabeth Palmer reports from Baghdad.
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Iraqi security officials inspect the reception area at the scientific research institute in Baghdad on Nov. 14, 2006. (AP Photo)
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Smoke rises from the site of a car bomb in Baghdad, Nov. 15, 2006. (AFP/Getty Images/Sabah Arar)
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Relatives of the higher education ministry's employees gather outside the main building in Baghdad on Nov. 14, 2006. (Getty Images/Sabah Afar)
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Iraqi university students leave their building in Baghdad on Nov. 14, 2006, following an order from Iraq's higher education minister, who ordered all universities closed until security improvements are made. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)
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Iraqi Higher Education Minister Abed Theyab, at a news conference Nov. 14, 2006, in Baghdad, Iraq, said he had repeatedly petitioned for more university security but received none. (CBS)
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Interactive Battle For Iraq The government, the insurgency, key players, background and photos.
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Photo Essay Donald Rumsfeld Defense Secretary and Iraq war architect steps down after six stormy years at the Pentagon.
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Interactive Campaign 2006 Complete coverage and analysis of Senate and key House races, plus gubernatorial elections.
The bomb, according to Police Lt. Bilal Ali, was in a car parked near a gas station in the Bab Shargi section of the Iraqi capital.
It happened at about 9:45 a.m.
Also Wednesday, U.S. officials said that a soldier and three more Marines have died – as a result of combat wounds suffered in the Iraqi province of Anbar – which has been a stronghold for insurgents.
Tuesday, as shock spread through Iraq over a mass kidnapping of scientists by abductors said to have been wearing government uniforms, a series of car bombs exploded around Iraq, killing and wounding scores of people.
Suspected Shiite militiamen dressed as Interior Ministry commandos stormed a Higher Education Ministry office Tuesday and kidnapped dozens of people after clearing the area under the guise of providing security for what they claimed would be a visit by the U.S. ambassador.
CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer reports that about 80 men in Iraqi police uniforms surrounded an Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education building in broad daylight and then moved inside, according to witnesses.
There are varying estimates of the number of people kidnapped, but it appeared that at least 50 were seized — one of the largest mass abductions in Iraq.
Authorities said as many as 20 were later released, but said a broadcast report that most hostages were freed appeared to be false.
Witnesses and authorities said the gunmen raced through all four stories of the building, forced men and women into separate rooms, handcuffed the men and loaded them aboard about 20 pickup trucks.
But by the time help arrived, the kidnappers had vanished with their hostages, leaving signs of a struggle, but few clues. As police cordoned off the building, news of the raid spread to relatives — who know very well what happens to most abduction victims in Iraq, Palmer reports.
Shortly afterward, authorities arrested six senior police officers in connection with the abductions — the police chief and five top subordinates in the Karradah district, the central Baghdad region where the kidnappers struck, Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Jalil Khalaf said.
In other developments:
The assault came on a day that saw at least 117 people die in the mounting disorder and violence gripping the country.
The abductions in broad daylight raised further questions about Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's commitment to wiping out the heavily armed Shiite militias of his prime political backers: the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, or SCIRI, and the Sadrist Movement of radical, anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
©MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
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See all 70 CommentsIs any war worth the effort ?
Are all wars bad, even if innocent people are saved ?
Is it OK that Iran gets nuclear weapons ?
IS our culture better than the Taliban ?
What barabarians we are dealing with !
When we took over in Germany, we did not have German's killing innocent Germans just to cause chaos. Nor in Japan. What kind of people do these things ? EVIL. Why surprised ?
The answer is, that our media has been so "even handed"
for so long with the Palest and Israeli conflicts, otherwise we would have known of the atrocities and targeting of innocent people, women and children that this bully culture enjoys. Do you know what "honor killings" are. Had our (stupid) college professors not taught such multicultural blater, and "we can't judge, generalize" other cultures, perhaps we would have had clear understanding of the Arabs/Muslims intolerance. Even now the academics are silent. As are "good Muslims" everywhere when people's heads are caught off.
We are in WWIII. We had better start fighting back with everything we have like we mean it. They are.
I agree with WVopfor81 in this quote he posted. Unfortunately, I believe that Duhbya has started something that will be continuing until my grandchildren are grown. I don't think, or at least I sincerely hope, that our troops are not still in Iraq until then. However, the infighting that has come about because Saddam is no longer in power will go on for decades. The people of Iraq and, indeed, the entire region will remember GW Bush as the terrorist he is.
duh finish the Job
What has been reported is simply another confirmation that Iraq is falling deeper and deeper into anarchy. Civil war will follow.
This is a region of the world where murderous violence has been the norm for thousands of years. The only "peace" that has ever been held has been due to an iron fisted dictator. Saddam was a pretty good one as they go.
Reagan thought so when he gave Saddam money, weapons, secret forces training and chemical weapons technology to fight Iran. Saddam didn't change, we did.
"And yes there are some individuals here whom so happen to be white that feel a sense of entitlement, at the expense of others, of which Bush and others fit very neatly into this category." kailumugo
Would those "some individuals here" include any Democrats. Maybe we should check ALL members of congress to see if they are white and priveledged. And if there are many...then what?
And yes there are some individuals here whom so happen to be white that feel a sense of entitlement, at the expense of others, of which Bush and others fit very neatly into this category.
Does that mean other ethnic groups don%u2019t possess similar qualities, no, and that%u2019s the real problem.
Moreover, does this mean all whites possess this malignant, grandiose, maladaptive behavior, no, there are decent whites, blacks, Latinos, Asians, Arabs, Iranians, etc.
The problem that exist %u201Cworldwide%u201D there are those whom have placed themselves centuries above others and feel only their opinions, beliefs, indoctrinations are correct.
WRONG!!!!
Likewise, there are those whom have elected themselves as pontificator and dictator over international affairs, thereby usurping power over leaders from other sovereign countries.
And have the opinionated audacity to reference individuals whom have dissimilar beliefs as amoral, primitive, and hedonistic.
This is a Freudian defense mechanism called %u201CRATIONALIZATION%u201D OR %u201CRATIONALISM%u201D, when trying to avoid reality one will surreptitiously or cleverly makes excuses to rationalize inappropriate behavior.
Identical to what%u2019s happening here, the rationalization of past historical events in order to reconcile one%u2019s own irrationality.
American history is decorated in atrocities against women, children and minorities, and although some may try to negate that fact, through rationalization, and by denigrating others with dissimilarities won%u2019t change history.
Yes, theoretically or technically, Western Europeans are no longer in medieval times, however, like the U.S. at times their actions are an enormous contradiction.
If you are going to insult the intelligent people of America, learn how to spell correctly first.
Posted by webdepot at 04:42 PM : Nov 14, 2006
Global Peace is the answer. Global disarmament. This is not an unattainable dream. The adults need to recognize that life is sacred. When adults refuse to come to the table in real behaviors for peaceful solutions,how is it our children are to learn to get along on the playground or in the neighborhoods? All "leaders" are representatives of the peoples--they are supposed to be models of moral integrity and sort of saviors of life. THey are anything and everything BUT that in every country except Bhutan. The world needs to learn from Bhutan.
Yes it was something like that. I remember thinking what kind of pompous jerks the U.S. was acting like - actually naming a bomb as if it were a fireworks show. Many civilians were killed. Not funny or amusing or impressive. Sickening actually. As though we were flexing whatever perceived power the psycho administration thought we had.
Worse, Rumsfeld needs to be tried for war crimes and genocide because that was the result.
Torturing prisoners does not do harm only to the prisoner. It has extreme psychological effects on the perpetrator also. They are not informed of this in boot camp or anywhere else.
You would think that, after this has happened to us several times, we would attempt to initiate a world-wide moratorium on arms sales of any kind to any country...
You said,
Gwagener: Remember when the initial bombing took place right in the beginning of the war with Iraq? The very first bombing by U.S. - they gave it a name. THe one you wrote does not ring a bell. Are you aware of any other names?
Now that I understand the question the answer is "shock and awe."
The phrase entered the language as sarcasm when the "shock and awe" proved ineffective. The concept was that the military in Iraq would be so "shocked and awed" by the initial attack that they would rebel against Saddam and sue for pease on our terms. Didn't work that way, unfortunately,
We are teaching these Iraqi soldiers and police how to conduct themselves in house to house combat techniques... and the ones we are teaching that end actually being our enemies, now understand how WE will act in house to house combat... You don't think they won't be taking advantage of that knowledge..
We are teaching our killers how to efficiently kill US.. although... they seem to be doing quite well, even without our instruction..
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