Kurdish Bridge Link To Baghdad Bombed
From south and north, Iraq's Kurdish region felt pressure from two sides Saturday, as saboteurs bombed a vital bridge link to Baghdad, and Turkish troops across the border massed for a possible strike.
The attack appeared to be the latest by insurgents who have tried to cripple vital Iraqi supply arteries, including Tigris River bridges in Baghdad.
"We won't allow it to be turned into a battleground," Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Saturday of the relatively peaceful Iraqi north, a haven for anti-Turkish Kurdish guerrillas.
Al-Maliki promised that the national and the Kurdish leadership were united in refusing to let Iraq be used as a base to harm neighboring countries and urged the sides to resolve their problems peacefully.
"If there are some problems, we should not rely on weapons and threats, or use violence and power because this will increase tension and deepen problems," al-Maliki said during a joint news conference with the leader of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, Massoud Barzani, in the regional capital of Irbil.
"Secondly, the Iraqi territory should be respected, and we will not allow it to become a battleground," he added. "As we don't want to harm neighboring countries, so we don't want the others to enter the Iraqi territory with a military incursion or fight of any kind."
The U.S.-backed Shiite leader also dismissed concerns that U.S. forces would stay in Iraq for 50 years following a White House comparison to the U.S. presence in South Korea.
"This is baseless because this matter is up to the Iraqi people and the government, and the Iraqi people did not make a decision yet, and discussion on this matter did not take place," al-Maliki said.
Turkey has been building up its military forces on the Iraqi border in recent weeks as political and military leaders debate whether to attack rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, who stage raids in southeast Turkey after crossing over from hideouts in Iraq.
Turkish commandos occasionally stage so-called "hot pursuits" of the rebels, who operate in small bands, carry little food and know fresh water sources in the region. Those pursuits are limited in time and scope.
Turks accuse Iraqi Kurds, who once fought alongside the Turkish soldiers against the PKK in Iraq, of supporting the separatist rebels and worry that the war in Iraq could lead to Iraq's disintegration and the creation of a Kurdish state in the north.
Turkey also is concerned that Iraqi Kurds' efforts to incorporate the oil-rich city of Kirkuk into their self-governing region in northern Iraq could embolden rebels seeking self-rule in southeast Turkey.
Both the United States and the Iraqi government oppose a Turkish cross-border offensive. Other officials in Baghdad have promised Turkey that they would prevent the PKK from launching attacks from the Iraqi territory but Turkey is growing increasingly impatient with their inability to rein in the rebels.
Such a confrontation between two U.S. allies could raise tensions between Turkey and the United States, which is struggling to stabilize the country and defeat an insurgency. U.S. commanders have not pursued the Kurdish rebels in remote mountain areas of northern Iraq, one of the few stable areas of the country.
Turkey already has more than 1,000 troops deployed mainly in the Sulaimaniyah area in northern Iraq, since the last major incursion a decade ago. The troops run several liaison offices in the region from where they collect intelligence and monitor rebel activities in the region. On Friday, Iraqi Kurds questioned some Turkish officers in civilian clothes at gunpoint, according to the Turkish military.
The Turkish military has warned that any action against its soldiers in Iraq would be "responded to at the highest level," after the incident in Sulaimaniyah.
In Other Developments:
The military says six U.S. troops were killed yesterday in five separate attacks. Since the Iraq war began in 2003, at least 3,485 U.S. troops have died in Iraq, according to an unofficial count by The Associated Press.
As U.S. jets roared overhead, Mahdi Army militiamen on Sunday battled with Iraqi troops and local police searching for two militia leaders in the southern city of Diwaniyah. At least three people were killed and 24 wounded, official Iraqi sources reported. The southern clashes came just hours after American helicopter gunships attacked targets in Mahdi Army-dominated Shiite east Baghdad, killing four suspected militants, the U.S. military reported, as the radical Shiite militia faced growing pressure to
bow to central government authority.
A parked car bomb struck an open-air market northeast of Baghdad on Sunday, killing at least 10 people and wounding more than two dozen, police said. The explosion occurred just after noon as the commercial area was packed with shoppers in Balad Ruz, police said, giving the casualty toll. Balad Ruz is a predominantly Shiite enclave in the volatile Diyala province that has recently faced a campaign of violence and intimidation by suspected Sunni insurgents.
At least eight people have been killed and 25 others wounded in a series of mortar barrages in Baghdad. The mortars rained down on a Sunni enclave in the Shiite-dominated area east of the Tigris River in the early morning hours today, and continued on-and-off for more than five hours. At least one woman and one child are among the dead.
In western Baghdad, a well-known Sunni cleric, Ali Khudir al-Zind, was killed in a drive-by shooting as he walked near his home, police said. Elsewhere in the city's western half, gunmen in two separate locations killed three people, and police found two bullet-riddled bodies of people who had been bound and blindfolded and showed signs of torture.
North of Baghdad, a Sunni tribal sheik and village mayor, Rokan Mutlak al-Jibouri, whose tribe is said to be opposed to the activities of al-Qaida in Iraq, was shot to death while leaving his home for work Saturday morning, Brig. Qadir said.
The kidnappers of five British citizens in Iraq have reportedly issued demands for their release. A senior Iraqi government source has told a British newspaper the victims are safe but will not be released unless their demands are met. The Sunday Times reports that representatives of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army want an end to British patrols in the southern city of Basra and for Britain to stop trying to kill the group's leaders. The militia also wants the release of nine Mahdi officials from British and American custody. The four private security workers and an IT consultant were kidnapped Tuesday from Iraq's finance ministry. Publicly, the Mahdi Army has denied any involvement in the abductions.
© 2009 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report. The attack appeared to be the latest by insurgents who have tried to cripple vital Iraqi supply arteries, including Tigris River bridges in Baghdad.
"We won't allow it to be turned into a battleground," Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Saturday of the relatively peaceful Iraqi north, a haven for anti-Turkish Kurdish guerrillas.
Al-Maliki promised that the national and the Kurdish leadership were united in refusing to let Iraq be used as a base to harm neighboring countries and urged the sides to resolve their problems peacefully.
"If there are some problems, we should not rely on weapons and threats, or use violence and power because this will increase tension and deepen problems," al-Maliki said during a joint news conference with the leader of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, Massoud Barzani, in the regional capital of Irbil.
"Secondly, the Iraqi territory should be respected, and we will not allow it to become a battleground," he added. "As we don't want to harm neighboring countries, so we don't want the others to enter the Iraqi territory with a military incursion or fight of any kind."
The U.S.-backed Shiite leader also dismissed concerns that U.S. forces would stay in Iraq for 50 years following a White House comparison to the U.S. presence in South Korea.
"This is baseless because this matter is up to the Iraqi people and the government, and the Iraqi people did not make a decision yet, and discussion on this matter did not take place," al-Maliki said.
Turkey has been building up its military forces on the Iraqi border in recent weeks as political and military leaders debate whether to attack rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, who stage raids in southeast Turkey after crossing over from hideouts in Iraq.
Turkish commandos occasionally stage so-called "hot pursuits" of the rebels, who operate in small bands, carry little food and know fresh water sources in the region. Those pursuits are limited in time and scope.
Turks accuse Iraqi Kurds, who once fought alongside the Turkish soldiers against the PKK in Iraq, of supporting the separatist rebels and worry that the war in Iraq could lead to Iraq's disintegration and the creation of a Kurdish state in the north.
Turkey also is concerned that Iraqi Kurds' efforts to incorporate the oil-rich city of Kirkuk into their self-governing region in northern Iraq could embolden rebels seeking self-rule in southeast Turkey.
Both the United States and the Iraqi government oppose a Turkish cross-border offensive. Other officials in Baghdad have promised Turkey that they would prevent the PKK from launching attacks from the Iraqi territory but Turkey is growing increasingly impatient with their inability to rein in the rebels.
Such a confrontation between two U.S. allies could raise tensions between Turkey and the United States, which is struggling to stabilize the country and defeat an insurgency. U.S. commanders have not pursued the Kurdish rebels in remote mountain areas of northern Iraq, one of the few stable areas of the country.
Turkey already has more than 1,000 troops deployed mainly in the Sulaimaniyah area in northern Iraq, since the last major incursion a decade ago. The troops run several liaison offices in the region from where they collect intelligence and monitor rebel activities in the region. On Friday, Iraqi Kurds questioned some Turkish officers in civilian clothes at gunpoint, according to the Turkish military.
The Turkish military has warned that any action against its soldiers in Iraq would be "responded to at the highest level," after the incident in Sulaimaniyah.
In Other Developments:
bow to central government authority.
Popular on CBSNews.com
- Man dead in "truly shocking" London attack 208 Comments
- Who were the 4 U.S. citizens killed in drone strikes?
- Mexican volcano on verge of eruption 15 Photos
- Graphic video: Man dead in "truly shocking" London attack Play Video
- People cling to car in "sidewalk skiing" stunt Play Video
- Volcano's rumbles may signal coming to life Play Video
- Graphic video: knife-wielding suspect talks to camera Play Video
- Is Pope Francis an exorcist?
You cannot be that naive. both Dems and Bush employ paid operatives whose jobs are to subvert, distract and argue/debate policy on these blogs. At no time can anyone (other than yourself) be considered just an average citizen%u2026 For all we know, you could be a paid hack of Bush's.
Posted by toldyouso21 at 06:39 AM : Jun 04, 2007
toldyouso21,,,
You think you are an above average U.S. Citizen because you Blog, good for you, I'll just remain an average U.S. Citizen, you can have the fake status of seeming more important because you Blog. I'm not a paid Bush hack as you claim, if Bush is paying and my Post fall into the payment category, send me the link so I can get paid, cool. We all the same goal I think! Protect the U.S. and make positive changes where necessary to make our government work better, simple enough! In the process of doing that you can't kill the patient or cripple it while you attempt to cure it, and in this case that patient is the U.S. itself. Some of these Post are so nasty, so evil, so filled with venom that they are worst than the problem itself, worst than some of even al Qaeda%u2019s rhetoric, and I can argue some of you are paid al Qaeda hacks! The U.S. needs to be in good condition for the next administration, in destroying Bush and his administration just make sure you don%u2019t weaken and destroy the U.S. in the process, that%u2019s the only point I%u2019m trying to make. You cannot be that naove as well.
"the relatively peaceful Iraqi north, a haven for anti-Turkish Kurdish guerrillas."
Interesting that US sponsored terrorists are called "guerillas."
These are the same "guerillas" (terrorists) that were attempting to overthrow Saddam's government. And, who were givee safe haven by the US in the "no fly zones."
They are only "peaceful" because the US is catering to their every whim and giving them whatever they want, including control over about half of Iraq's oil and gas fields.
The US is one of the most hypocritical nations on the planet.
due to all of that,and how abysmally this war was conducted we NO longer trust or believe anything Bush says. Especially on the issues of this war. YOu may disagree but at least 70% of us think otherwise. Due to that, we are not likely to believe or endorse what we are told about IRAN--because Bush has a record of lying and tailoring events and so called withholding intel --to fit his own agenda. We do not trust his agenda. His credibility is almost nil (most Americans think he is not truthful and do not believe what he says) You may not like this post--but not only the polls but even conservative pundits back this up. Nobody believes or trusts Bush except his party faithful. ---AND SEVERAL OF THEM ARE STARTING TO MOVE AWAY AND DOUBT HIM ALSO. faCE IT--EVEN IF IRAN DESERVES MORE AGGRESSION AND ATTENTION--BUSH IS THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF--NOBODY WANTS TO COME RUNNING OR BELIEVE WHAT HE SAYS ANYMORE.
Posted by toldyouso21 at 08:59 AM : Jun 04, 2007
due to all of that,and how abysmally this war was conducted we NO longer trust or believe anything Bush says. Especially on the issues of this war. YOu may disagree but at least 70% of us think otherwise. Due to that, we are not likely to believe or endorse what we are told about IRAN--because Bush has a record of lying and tailoring events and so called withholding intel --to fit his own agenda. We do not trust his agenda. His credibility is almost nil (most Americans think he is not truthful and do not believe what he says) You may not like this post--but not only the polls but even conservative pundits back this up. Nobody believes or trusts Bush except his party faithful. ---AND SEVERAL OF THEM ARE STARTING TO MOVE AWAY AND DOUBT HIM ALSO. faCE IT--EVEN IF IRAN DESERVES MORE AGGRESSION AND ATTENTION--BUSH IS THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF--NOBODY WANTS TO COME RUNNING OR BELIEVE WHAT HE SAYS ANYMORE.
Posted by toldyouso21 at 08:59 AM : Jun 04, 2007
due to all of that,and how abysmally this war was conducted we NO longer trust or believe anything Bush says. Especially on the issues of this war. YOu may disagree but at least 70% of us think otherwise. Due to that, we are not likely to believe or endorse what we are told about IRAN--because Bush has a record of lying and tailoring events and so called withholding intel --to fit his own agenda. We do not trust his agenda. His credibility is almost nil (most Americans think he is not truthful and do not believe what he says) You may not like this post--but not only the polls but even conservative pundits back this up. Nobody believes or trusts Bush except his party faithful. ---AND SEVERAL OF THEM ARE STARTING TO MOVE AWAY AND DOUBT HIM ALSO. faCE IT--EVEN IF IRAN DESERVES MORE AGGRESSION AND ATTENTION--BUSH IS THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF--NOBODY WANTS TO COME RUNNING OR BELIEVE WHAT HE SAYS ANYMORE.
Posted by toldyouso21 at 08:59 AM : Jun 04, 2007
Just so you do not misunderstand and give way to more venting: what I am posting is that due to Bush's lies, (about wiretapping, the connection of Saddam to 9/11 and Al Qaeda, not knowing about the levees in N.O, etc) mistakes: WMD, focusing on oil instead of weapons caches, disenfranchinsing the Iraq baathists, etc, misinformation: (Niger yellow cake, mobile labs, we were winning when we were not) waving the NIE reports around and deliberately misquoting the information in them. Ignoring the bad news in Iraq, refusing to body count civilians then claiming to know the amount but also putting rules in place to deliberately undercount them. etc, Downing st. memo, Rendon group
due to all of that,and how abysmally this war was conducted we know longer trust or believe anything Bush says. Especially on the issues of this war. YOu may disagree but at least 70% of us think otherwise. Due to that, we are not likely to believe or endorse what we are told about Iraq--because Bush has a record of lying and tailoring events and so called withholding intel --to fit his own agenda. We do not trust his agenda. His credibility is almost nil (most Americans think he is not truthful and do not believe what he says) You may not like this post--but not only the polls but even conservative pundits back this up. Nobody believes or trusts Bush not except his party faithful.
I can go on and on, but you can not dump all of America's problems and blame them on Bush. Posted by pwrslm at 07:35 AM : Jun 04, 2007
Reading comprehension NOT your strong point? Do you have a platform about the ills of America--because nothing you bring up in your post even remotely addresses what was in my post. I said that due to the issues in Iraq and how Bush handled them--he destroyed his credibility:
If you have a platform--just post it--but if you want to respond to another post--it should at least make sense. Due to the lies on WMD, the outing of a CIA agent, the DOJ Debacle, the WB debacle, Niger yellowcake, the lies about wiretapping, the bad planning, the poor planning, the nonplanning, Katrina, FEMA disaster, Halliburton and LA crony scandals, Enron, etc : Whatever you are, the facts are, Bush squandered his credibility and trust from the American people. Posted by toldyouso21
Now, what do the social ills of America have to do with the Iraq war or Bush?
THERE ARE MILLIONS OF OTHER GOOD PEOPLE IN THE MIDDLE EAST THAT DESERVE A VOICE JUST NOT AMERICAN LIVES!
"Gen. William Odom discusses the %u201Cworst strategic disaster in American history,%u201D the war in Iraq: the view of most generals that the war is wrong, the failure of the politicians to see the consequences of their actions, the centrality of the neoconservatives and the Israel lobby in pushing for the Iraq invasion, the %u201Csurge,%u201D
www.antiwar.com/bl
og/2007/05/10/gen-william-odom
EVEN AS AMERICAN MILITARY AID LANDS IN LEBANON, President Bush is funding Al Qaeda in Lebanon with funds from Iraq!
http://www.newyorker.com/
fact/content/articles/070305fa_fact_hersh
READ AIPAC BRAG ABOUT THEIR INFLUENCE
ON AMERICAN POLITICIANS!
http://www.aipac.org/for
ms/join_aipacClubs.htm
http://www.rr.com/flash/index.cfm?rev=10217
The response from Bush and Co is this is not unexpected since the plan just started.
This does not make sense. We claim we will be able to assess by Sept. That is in 3 months--but....we have already been there 4 months and claim we just started. How in the hell could we start a surge 4 months ago and claim "we just started" then claim within only 3 months we will know anything.
Perhaps Bush and Co should defer to the other military analysts which state none of the objectives for Iraq will have been met by Sept and that it may take several years before many of them show progress. This is why we have to just say no to Bush's plans--left up to him and Cheney--this war would run on like a bad case of diarrhea: never ending, leaving the host weak, and stinking to high heaven.
In a pigs eye. Americans did that with thier porn, drugs, and stupidity. We dont own any special high moral ground, havent for decades, clear back to the 80s when the Germans figured out that we withheld information about WWII from thier school books. Half of them learned about Hitler from other people in other nations.
I can go on and on, but you can not dump all of America's problems and blame them on Bush. We are a nation of gluttonous pigs, just go to the grocery store and you cant miss it. *** addicts, drug addicts, homosexuals, alchoholics, you name it, right down to street gangs, its nothing new to America. Dont act like you lost anything, its been gone, long ago.