Suicide Blast Hits Iraqi Cop's Funeral
At Least 15 Killed In Diyala; PM Al-Maliki Orders Halt To Raids Against Shiite Militias
-
-
Photo
U.S. Army soldiers from Charlie company 1-27IN, 25th infantry division take up their position near Patrol Base Texas in southern Sadr City, Baghdad, on Thursday, April 3, 2008. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
-
Photo
Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammed al-Askari shouts instructions to Iraqi Army soldiers to secure a street in a show of force in a militia stronghold that has seen some of the fiercest fighting in the southern city of Basra some about 340 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 2, 2008. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jurani)
-
Photo
Iraqi soldiers secure a street in a show of force in a militia stronghold that has seen some of the fiercest fighting in the southern city of Basra, about 340 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, April 2, 2008. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jurani)
-
Photo
Iraqi woman walks past the demolished car that was destroyed during a bombing and recent clashes between the Mahdi Army and Iraqi government forces backed by the US military in Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, April 1, 2008. (AP Photo/ Karim Kadim)
-
Photo
Residents check damage to their apartments after a bombing and recent clashes between the Mahdi Army and Iraqi government forces backed by the US military in Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, March 31, 2008. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)
-
-
Play CBS Video
Video
Eyewitness: Green Zone Attack
Lara Logan was there as U.S. troops responded to insurgent attacks on Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone.
-
Video
Eye To Eye: Fight In Sadr City
"Only On The Web": CBS News' Lara Logan speaks to Lt. Col. Dan Barnett about the fight for Baghdad's Sadr City, where U.S. and Iraqi troops have met fierce resistance from Shiite militias.
-
Video
Preview: The Path To War
Douglas Feith, former undersecretary of defense for policy, tells Steve Kroft the U.S. attack on Iraq was anticipatory self-defense; not 9/11 retaliation. Sunday, July 6, 7 p.m. ET/PT.
-
Interactive
Iraq: 5 Years At War
Five years after the U.S.-led invasion, the war wears on.
-
Photo Essay
Week In Iraq Photos
A daily diary with scenes of the latest attacks and snapshots from the effort to rebuild a nation.
The attacker detonated an explosives vest in the midst of the mourners attending the funeral for a Sunni policeman who had been shot dead on Thursday night, said an officer who declined to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Meanwhile, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered a nationwide freeze on raids against suspected Shiite militiamen. His announcement Friday came one day after Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr hinted at retaliation if the arrests of his followers in the Mahdi Army militia did not stop. The militia fought government troops in Basra and Baghdad last week.
Al-Maliki's statement did not mention the Mahdi Army by name or give a timeframe for the freeze, saying only that the move is designed to give a "chance to those who repented and want to lay down their arms."
On Thursday, Iraqi troops killed seven militants and detained 16 in three separate incidents in Basra, a U.S. military statement said Friday.
The attack on the funeral occurred in Sadiyah, a town 60 miles north of Baghdad in the volatile Diyala province.
Most of the victims of the attack - the deadliest in Diyala this year - appeared to be relatives of the dead policemen, the officer said.
Prior to al-Maliki's order to cease raids In Basra, Iraqi special forces captured a suspected militant leader who has been rallying insurgents in the area to fight against coalition forces, the military statement said.
"Intelligence reports have linked the man to the kidnapping and murder of Iraqi Army and ISOF soldiers. He is also believed to be involved in oil smuggling and foreign fighter networks," said the statement, which did not provide any further details.
In a separate firefight, a U.S. warplane was used to bomb insurgents engaging Iraqi special forces in the city. The air strike killed two militants, the statement said.
I was not expecting, frankly, a major battle from Day One.
U.S. Ambassador Ryan CrockerFighting eased last Sunday when al-Sadr ordered his fighters to stand down under a deal brokered in Iran.
Nevertheless, al-Maliki, himself a Shiite, insisted that the campaign to reclaim Basra was on track and that he would soon go after "criminal gangs" in Baghdad and elsewhere. That vow came Thursday - before he announced a halt to all raids against Shiite militias.
Al-Maliki specified Thursday two Baghdad neighborhoods - Sadr City and Shula - where the Mahdi militia holds sway and where U.S. and Iraqi forces have clashed with militants in recent days.
Both areas remain under a vehicle ban imposed last week throughout Baghdad but which has been lifted elsewhere in the capital.
In other developments:
The violence in Basra erupted as the two top American officials in Iraq were preparing to brief Congress on prospects for further U.S. troop cuts.
U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker, who will appear before Congress on Tuesday with top commander Gen. David Petraeus, said he was surprised at the way the Basra campaign unfolded.
"I had the understanding that this was going to be an effort to get down, show they were serious with additional forces, put the squeeze on, develop a full picture of conditions and then act accordingly," he told reporters Thursday. "I was not expecting, frankly, a major battle from Day One."
Still, Crocker said he was encouraged that the Iraqi government was willing to take on Shiite militias, some of which maintain close ties to major political parties in the national leadership.
"Were there problems? There were a boatload of problems, and they still have a long way to go," Crocker added.
In a statement Thursday, al-Sadr complained that although he had called on his militia to stop fighting, the army and police were continuing illegal arrests and attacks against his followers.
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Video and Galleries from Iraq After Saddam
- Latest in Iraq After Saddam
- Bombs Claim 50 in Iraq
- Biden Meets with Key U.S. Leaders in Iraq
- Senate Investigates Blackwater Subsidiary



The original sectarian fighting of 06-07 was all about settling centuries old scores and new ones created by al-Zarqawi.Disbanding the Iraqi army and De Baathfication made this inevitable creating vacuum we have still yet to fill and still don''t look like filling nor do the Iraqis. Get ready for anarchy.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted by swwils at 08:17 AM : Apr 04, 2008
+ report abuse
Ummm??? These people can''t get from one town to the next.. I think the guy YOU should be concerned with, the guy who we KNOW can recruit enough people and finance them is in PAKISTAN not Iraq!! Haven''t you heard yet... Iraq was a BIG LIE. Bush attacked it because they COULD attack us someday down the road... when no one knows, but all the rest of the Trash you were fed?? It was all LIES!! Sieg Heil Bush
Calendar
Year
Active
Dutya
Full-Time (est.)
Guard-Reserve
Selected
Reserve
FTEb
Total
Military
FTE
Total
Deaths
1980 2,050,758 22,000 86,872 2,159,630 2,392
1981 2,093,032 22,000 91,719 2,206,751 2,380
1982 2,112,609 41,000 97,458 2,251,067 2,319
1983 2,123,909 49,000 100,455 2,273,364 2,465
1984 2,138,339 55,000 104,583 2,297,922 1,999
1985 2,150,379 64,000 108,806 2,323,185 2,252
1986 2,177,845 69,000 113,010 2,359,855 1,984
1987 2,166,611 71,000 115,086 2,352,697 1,983
1988 2,121,659 72,000 115,836 2,309,495 1,819
1989 2,112,128 74,200 117,056 2,303,384 1,636
1990 2,046,806 74,250 137,268 2,258,324 1,507
1991 1,943,937 70,250 184,002 2,198,189 1,787
1992 1,773,996 67,850 111,491 1,953,337 1,293
1993 1,675,269 68,500 105,768 1,849,537 1,213
1994 1,581,649 65,000 99,833 1,746,482 1,075
1995 1,502,343 65,000 94,585 1,661,928 1,040
1996 1,456,266 65,000 92,409 1,613,310 974
1997 1,418,773 65,000 94,609 1,578,382 817
1998 1,381,034 65,000 92,536 1,538,570 827
1999 1,367,838 65,000 93,104 1,525,942 796
2000 1,372,352 65,000 93,078 1,530,430 758
2001 1,384,812 65,000 102,284 1,552,196 891
2002 1,411,200 66,000 149,942 1,627,142 999
2003 1,423,348 66,000 243,284 1,732,632 1,228
2004 1,411,287 66,000 234,629 1,711,916 1,874
2005 1,378,014 66,000 220,000 1,664,014 1,942
2006 1,378,014 66,000 220,000 1,664,014 1,858
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL32492.pdf
As bad as B/C are for launching this war---as bad, if not worse---are their supporters who wrap themselves up in the flag, who think supporting the war is a sign of patriotism, and then try to get others to likewise make the same mistake and suppost the war!
Nothing is as unpatriotic as supporting an illegal, contrived, murderous war that is/will bankrupct this country eventually and create a generation of ''walking wounded'' that will be a constant reminder of how this countrys'' citizens failed to remain vigilant in guarding their personal liberties'', rights, & constitution! And, as a result, it was ''set aside''!
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article19671.htm
If the Quisling Regime is going to kidnap Iraqis, torture them, murder their families and launch assaults on free Iraqis...then perhaps no place should be safe for them...no security for them in their service to the Occupation and their betrayal of the Iraqi people.
If such people were to support an Occuppier in America...I would hope that they, their children, their dogs, their homes, their possessions, their mistresses and their friends would not be safe from retribution anywhere and at any time!!
European descent .......69.12%
Hispanic ...............2.5%
Black ..................2.3%
Asian ..................3.7%
Native American ........1.0%
Other ..................2.6%
That adds up to 81%. Where are the other 19%?
al-Sadr is calling for a million Iraqis to come out and demonstrate against the Occupation.
Can Maliki or any of the other Quislings get up a counter demonstration for the continuation of the Occupation? A "We love the people who murdered 1,000,000 of our fellow citizens...who created 4,000,000 refugees...who destroyed our civilian infrastructure...and, who want us to sign our oil over to"--Demonstration?
--------------------------------------
Actually, supporting the troops is different than supportin the war. But we do need to get out of Iraq. Agree there.
Whether or not you wish to identify them as Jihadists and/or detail their views---I did not---I believe my initial statement is correct! So, we''re in relative agreement on that point? Correct?! :)
Posted by JERSupporter at 11:13 AM : Apr 04, 2008
My response:
I agree! There''s a HUGE difference between supporting the troops and supporting the war!! And SPECIFICALLY, my criticism is directed at those supporting the WAR in my previous post!! I''m glad you agree we need to get out of there!
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/81266
Where is Congress, when all this is taking place? Counting their lucre from tens of millions of dollars that Congressmen have invested with the Merchants of Death like Haliburton...
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/04/03/america/NA-GEN-US-Congress-Defense-Investments.php
One hundred and fifty-one members are invested in the military industrial complex that they are dumping hundreds of billions of dollars into while selling this country down the tubes!
FREE IRAQ!...FREE AMERICA!!...DOWN WITH THE DEMOPUBLICAN REGIME!!
mission accomplished
-
by ioweign
April 5, 2008 9:27 PM PDT
- Do you want further proof? Consider the latest census, of Americans. It shows the following FACTS about the distribution of American citizens, by Race:
-
Reply to this comment
-
See all 19 CommentsEuropean descent .......69.12%
Hispanic ...............2.5%
Black ..................2.3%
Asian ..................3.7%
Native American ........1.0%
Other ..................2.6%
That adds up to 81%. Where are the other 19%?
Posted by hungry1968 at 11:02 AM : Apr 04, 2008
Some are too busy campaigning for daddy and the others are walking in George W. Bush''s footsteps (********* most likely).