1 600 gefallene US-Soldaten im Iraq

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A rocket blasted a commercial building in Baghdad, killing at least seven people and wounding 30 others, Iraqi police officials said on Monday.

It was followed by another rocket attack that hit a nearby house, killing one person and wounding two in the Za'afaraniya area of Baghdad.

Police said two parties in the Shi'ite alliance dominant in Iraqi politics -- the Dawa Party and the Fadhila Party -- had offices in the building.

 

Dubai (Reuters) - Der frühere Stellvertreter Saddam Husseins hat die arabische Welt in einer Tonbandbotschaft zum Boykott der irakischen Regierung aufgerufen.

Wann die am Montag vom arabischen Fernsehsender Al Dschasira ausgestrahlte Botschaft aufgenommen wurde, blieb zunächst unklar. Sollte sich das Band als authentisch und aktuell erweisen, würde es die These der USA stützen, dass der untergetauchte Issat Ibrahim al-Duri noch am Leben ist. Im Herbst 2005 war der Gefolgsmann Saddams im Internet für Tod erklärt worden.

Ibrahim richtete seinen Appell speziell an die Staaten der Arabischen Liga, die noch in dieser Woche in der sudanesischen Hauptstadt Khartum tagen. Diese Länder seien aufgefordert, die irakischen Widerstandsgruppen als "einzige legitimen Vertreter des irakischen Volkes zu betrachten". Die von den USA gestützte Übergangsregierung in Bagdad wird in der Botschaft hingegen als "Regime der Agenten und Verräter" bezeichnet.

Der 1942 geborene Ibrahim steht auf der US-Liste der meist gesuchten 55 Iraker an sechster Stelle. Er unterstützte Saddam bei dem Umsturz 1968, der die Baath-Partei an die Macht brachte. Er galt nach dem Sturz des irakischen Herrschers als einer der Organisatoren des hauptsächlich von militanten Sunniten getragenen Widerstands im Irak. In der Tonbandaufzeichnung wurden Anschläge auf Moscheen, heilige Stätten der Sunniten und Kirchen im Irak sowie die Tötung von Zivilisten jedoch verurteilt. Den Tätern werde "früher oder später" Rache widerfahren. In den vergangenen Wochen war es im Irak verstärkt zu gewaltsamen Auseinandersetzungen zwischen Sunniten und Schiiten gekommen, die das Land an den Rand eines Bürgerkriegs gebracht hatten.

In der Vergangenheit hatte es Spekulationen gegeben, Ibrahim leide an Krebs. Sein Gesundheitszustand soll sich sehr verschlechtert haben, seit er sich versteckt hält. Mitte November war im Internet eine Todesnachricht erschienen, die die USA indes anzweifelten.


 

Canberra (Reuters) - Der Kampf für westliche Werte entscheidet sich nach Ansicht des britischen Premierminister Tony Blair vor allem im Irak und in Afghanistan.

Auf keinen Fall dürfe man sich dort den islamischen Extremisten beugen, sagte Blair am Montag in einer Rede vor dem australischen Parlament in Canberra. "Jetzt ist nicht der Zeitpunkt, sich zurückzuziehen. Dies ist die Zeit für Mut, um die Sache durchzuziehen." Ein Sieg gegen die Moslem-Extremisten im Irak und in Afghanistan sende eine wichtige Botschaft an die gesamte islamische Welt. "Das trifft sie im Herzen ihrer Ideologie", sagte Blair. "Wir dürfen nicht zögerlich sein im Angesicht eines Krieges, der schlichtweg darüber entscheidet, ob die Werte, an die wir glauben, triumphieren oder scheitern."

Westliche Staaten müssten eine starke Allianz bilden, forderte Blair. Es sei wichtig, auch in anderen Krisenregionen Präsenz zu zeigen. Blair forderte eine "aktive Außenpolitik des Engagements", der es nicht nur um Sicherheitsfragen, sondern auch um die weltweite Bekämpfung von Hunger, Krankheiten und die Gefahr eines Klimawandels gehen sollte. "Wo auch immer Menschen in Angst leben und ohne Aussicht darauf, voran zu kommen, sollten wir an ihrer Seite sein; ob im Sudan, in Simbabwe, in Birma oder in Nordkorea." USA-Kritikern entgegnete er: "Die Gefahr mit Amerika ist heutzutage nicht, dass sie zu viel involviert sind. Die Gefahr ist, dass sie entscheiden, die Zugbrücke hochzuklappen und sich zurückzuziehen. Es ist für uns wichtig, dass sie involviert sind."

Die australischen Abgeordneten feierten Blair für seine Rede mit stehenden Ovationen. Auch Oppositionsführer Kim Beazley hielt sich mit Kritik zurück, obwohl er sich bereits offen für einen Abzug australischer Truppen aus dem Irak und aus Afghanistan ausgesprochen hatte. Vor dem Parlamentsgebäude protestierten etwa 100 Demonstranten gegen Blair. Auf Plakaten bezeichneten sie ihn als Lügner und forderten ein Ende der Truppen-Präsenz im Irak. Großbritannien und Australien zählen dort zu den wichtigsten Verbündeten der USA.


 

Bagdad (Reuters) - Der irakische Minister für nationale Sicherheit, Abd al-Karim al-Ensi, hat den US-Truppen sowie irakischen Soldaten vorgeworfen, in einer Moschee von Bagdad ein Massaker an Gläubigen verübt zu haben.

Der Minister bekräftigte damit die Vorwürfe des militanten schiitischen Geistlichen Moktada al-Sadr, dessen Sprecher bereits am Vortag von einem Massaker an Unbewaffneten gesprochen hatte.

"Zum Abendgebet drangen amerikanische Soldaten in Begleitung irakischer Truppen in die Mustafa-Moschee ein und töteten 37 Menschen", sagte der schiitische Politiker, ein Verbündeter von Ministerpräsident Ibrahim Al-Dschaafari, am Montag der Nachrichtenagentur Reuters. "Sie waren alle unbewaffnet. Keiner hat einen einzigen Schuss auf die Soldaten abgefeuert. Sie (die Soldaten) kamen rein, fesselten die Leute und erschossen sie alle. Sie hinterließen keine Verwundeten."

Am Vortag hatte bereits ein Sprecher Sadrs gesagt, die Soldaten hätten die Gläubigen gefesselt und getötet. Er sprach von 20 Opfern. Der staatliche Fernsehsender Irakija zeigte blutige Leichen in ziviler Kleidung.

Das US-Militär nahm zu den Berichten zunächst nicht Stellung, teilte jedoch mit, irakische Spezialeinheiten hätten unter der Aufsicht von US-Beratern eine Razzia gegen Aufständische in dem nahe gelegenen Aadhamija-Distrikt vorgenommen. Dabei seien 16 Aufständische getötet und 15 festgenommen worden.


 

Gouverneur stoppt Zusammenarbeit mit US-Truppen

Ein angebliches Massaker von US-Soldaten in einer schiitischen Moschee belastet die Zusammenarbeit der irakischen Regierung mit dem amerikanischen Militär. Der Gouverneur von Bagdad kündigte an, die Kooperation werde eingestellt, solange es keine unabhängige Untersuchung gebe.

Bagdad - Es sei heute beschlossen worden, sämtliche Zusammenarbeit mit den US-Truppen zu stoppen, bis eine unabhängige Kommission gegründet worden sei, die die Vorgänge in der schittischen Moschee untersuche, teilte Bagdads Gouverneur Hussein al-Tahan mit.

Video: Reuters
Mehr als 20 Gläubige seien in der Mustafa-Moschee im Bagdader Schaab-Distrikt getötet worden, behauptete ein Sprecher des Schiiten-Führers Muktada al-Sadr. Anwohner und Polizei-Kreise sagten dagegen, es sei zu Gefechten mit Sadrs Mahdi-Miliz gekommen. Dabei seien 20 Kämpfer getötet worden.

Das US-Militär teilte bislang lediglich mit, irakische Spezialeinheiten hätten unter der Aufsicht von US-Beratern eine Razzia gegen Aufständische in dem nahegelegenen Adhamija-Distrikt vorgenommen. Dabei seien 16 Aufständische getötet und 15 festgenommen worden. Die Soldaten seien beschossen worden.

Bei den "Aufständischen" habe man eine irakische Geisel entdeckt, teilte das US-Militär weiter mit. Außerdem seien Waffen und Material zur Herstellung von Sprengsätzen gefunden worden. Der Entführte, ein Zahntechniker des Gesundheitsministeriums, war wenige Stunden zuvor in Bagdad verschleppt und den Angaben zufolge von den Kidnappern geschlagen worden. Die Armee betonte, die Soldaten hätten keine Moschee "betreten oder beschädigt".

"Die amerikanischen Streitkräfte sind zur Gebetszeit in die Mustafa-Moschee gegangen und haben mehr als 20 Gläubige getötet", sagte dagegen der Sadr-Sprecher Hasim al-Aradschi. "Sie haben sie gefesselt und erschossen." Ein Augenzeuge berichtete dagegen, in der Moschee habe ein Gottesdienst zu Ehren eines von Aufständischen getöteten Mannes stattgefunden.

Der staatliche Fernsehsender al-Irakija zeigte blutige Leichen in ziviler Kleidung in einem Raum, in dem keine Waffen zu sehen waren. Ein Sprecher von Ministerpräsident Ibrahim al-Dschaafari sagte, dieser sei über die Berichte sehr besorgt. Einige der Opfer sollen das Abzeichen einer Splittergruppe der Dawa-Partei von Dschaafari getragen haben Der US-Kommandeur im Irak, General George Casey, habe eine umfassende Untersuchung zugesichert.

Transportminister Salem al-Maliki, ein Anhänger Sadrs, sprach von einem Versuch, die Mahdi-Miliz in einen weiteren Kampf hineinzuziehen. Sadrs Sprecher Aradschi sagte, die Gruppe rufe ihre Anhänger zur Ruhe auf. "Wir wollen keinen dritten Krieg", sagte er.

Sadr hat bereits zwei Mal gegen die neue irakische Regierung revoltiert. Die Aufstände wurden jedoch von US-geführten Truppen niedergeschlagen. Seit 2004 spielt er, offenbar mit iranischer Unterstützung, eine wichtige Rolle in der regierenden Schiitischen Allianz.

Ein Führungsmitglied der Dawa-Partei, Dschawad al-Maliki, machte die US-Armee ebenfalls für das Blutbad verantwortlich und forderte eine Untersuchung. Offenbar hätten die US-Soldaten einen gesuchten Mann verfolgt, der aus der Moschee geflohen sei. "Das ist aber keine Rechtfertigung für diesen Angriff und Tod dieser Menschen", sagte Maliki laut der Nachrichtenagentur al-Irakija. "Das war ein feindlicher Angriff mit dem Ziel, einen Bürgerkrieg zu provozieren."

 

Todesengel im Auftrag des Terrors?

Ein schlimmer Verdacht: Ein Notarzt in Kirkuk soll mindestens 35 irakische Soldaten und Polizisten umgebracht haben. Der Mann habe gestanden, sie falsch medikamentiert und lebenserhaltende Maschinen abgeschaltet zu haben, teilten kurdische Behörden mit. Er bekenne sich zu den Aufständischen.

Berlin - "Ich habe Beatmungsmaschinen abgestellt, den Strom in den Operationssälen abgestellt und Wunden wieder geöffnet", soll der Arzt Luay Omar Taie gestanden haben. Mindestens 35 irakische Soldaten und Polizisten soll er auf diese Weise getötet haben. Begründung: "Ich hasse die Amerikaner und das, was sie dem Irak angetan haben."



REUTERS
Irakische Soldaten: "Er erledigte den Rest"
Die erschütternden Zitate sollen aus einem aufgezeichneten Geständnis des Arztes stammen. Einem Bericht der "Washington Post" zufolge ist ein solches Band am Sonntag vom kurdischen Fernsehen ausgestrahlt worden. Kurdische Sicherheitsdienste hätten den Bericht bestätigt.

"Wenn die Terroristen es nicht schafften, einen Polizisten oder Soldaten zu töten, erledigte er den Rest", zitierte der britische "Independent" bereits Mitte vergangener Woche Yadgar Shukir Abdullah Jaff, einen Polizeichef von Kirkuk. Der Arzt habe acht oder neun Monate lang sein Unwesen als Todesengel des Terrors getrieben. Angeblich sei er stets bereit gewesen, in der Notaufnahme zu arbeiten.

Verbindung zu Ansar al-Sunna

Der Arzt sei verhaftet worden, hieß es in dem Bericht weiter, nachdem der Anführer der Zelle, zu der er gehört habe, festgenommen worden sei und ausgepackt habe. Die "Washington Post" betonte allerdings, es sei nicht gesichert, dass das Geständnis nicht erzwungen worden ist.

In dem TV-"Geständnis" hatte Taie offenbar ausgesagt, er habe bis zu 100 US-Dollar für jeden getöteten Soldaten oder Polizisten erhalten. Unter seinen Opfern sei auch der Hilfspolizeichef von Kirkuk, General Ajman Abdullah, sowie dessen Bruder, ein Soldat, der nach einem Bombenanschlag mit einer Verwundung eingeliefert worden war.

Der Zelle, zu der Taie gehört haben soll, wird vorgeworfen, über 150 Menschen entführt und mindestens 18 von ihnen ermordet zu haben, berichtet die "Washington Post" unter Berufung auf einen Nachrichtendienstmitarbeiter der Patriotischen Union Kurdistans, einer kurdischen Partei. Die Gruppe sein eine kriminelle Vereinigung, habe aber Verbindungen zu der Dschihadisten-Gruppe Ansar al-Sunna
 

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A leading Iraqi Shi'ite cleric on Friday demanded the United States sack its envoy, heading a push for a unity government, accusing him of siding with fellow Sunni Muslims in the sectarian conflict gripping the country.

Ayatollah Mohammed al-Yacoubi's call at Friday prayers came as political leaders held their latest round of negotiations to form a new government, months after parliamentary elections in December, as sectarian bloodshed rises.

In a sermon read out at mosques for Friday prayers, Yacoubi said Washington had underestimated the conflict between Shi'ites and the once dominant Sunni Arab minority, which many fear threatens to trigger a civil war.

"By this, they are either misled by reports, which lack objectivity and credibility, submitted to the United States by their sectarian ambassador to Iraq ... or they are denying this fact," Yacoubi said in the message, later issued as a statement.

"It (the United States) should not yield to terrorist blackmail and should not be deluded or misled by spiteful sectarians. It should replace its ambassador to Iraq if it wants to protect itself from further failures."

URGENT EFFORTS

After the imam of Baghdad's Rahman mosque read that line, worshippers chanted "Allahu Akbar" -- God is Greatest.

Iraq's political leaders held their latest round of talks on forming a new government on Friday, under mounting pressure at home and from the United States to form a government of national unity to end the sectarian violence and avert civil war.

Afghan-born ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, the highest ranking Muslim in the U.S. administration has spearheaded urgent U.S. efforts to press politicians to agree on a government embracing Shi'ites, Sunnis and Kurds to avert a sectarian civil war.

The Shi'ite-Sunni bloodshed has worsened dramatically since a major Shi'ite shrine in the city of Samarra was bombed on February 22, sparking a wave of violence and poisoning the political atmosphere during the crucial negotiations.

Hundreds have died since and more than 30,000 people have fled their homes as Shi'ite and Sunni militias seek to cleanse their neighbourhoods.  
 

lt. Pentagon..


http://www.defenselink.mil/news/casualty.pdf



füx  

BLACKBURN (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accepted on Friday the United States had probably made thousands of errors in Iraq but defended the overall strategy of removing Saddam Hussein.

Local Muslims and anti-war activists told Rice to "Go Home" when British counterpart Jack Straw earlier led her on a tour of his home town of Blackburn in the industrial northwest, an area which rarely plays host to overseas politicians.

"Yes, I know we have made tactical errors, thousands of them," she said in answer to a question over whether lessons had been learned since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

"I believe strongly that it was the right strategic decision, that Saddam had been a threat to the international community long enough," she added.

Earlier, about 250 protesters gathered outside a school which Rice visited, waving placards urging her to go home and shouting as her motorcade arrived.

Many of them were locals from Straw's constituency of Blackburn, a former cotton town with a 20 percent Muslim population. Straw invited Rice to the area after he toured her home state of Alabama last year.

Protesters had already persuaded a mosque in the town to withdraw its invitation to her.

"The Muslim population is very angry. She's not welcome in Blackburn," said Suliman, one of the demonstrators outside Pleckgate school, where Rice met young pupils.

"How many lives per gallon?" asked one of the placards held aloft, in reference to the U.S. invasion of oil-rich Iraq which many Britons opposed.

During a visit to a Student Council meeting at the school, Rice was asked whether she was upset by the demonstrators.

"Oh, it's OK, people have a right to protest and a right to make their views known," Rice told the teenage student.
 

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Three U.S. soldiers have been killed in Iraq and two military pilots are presumed dead after their helicopter was apparently shot down while on patrol, the U.S. military said Sunday.

The AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter went down west of Yousifiah on Saturday evening while conducting a combat air patrol, the U.S. military said in a statement. Officials believe the aircraft was shot down.

Recovery efforts continue southwest of Baghdad, the military statement said, and the names of the two soldiers are being withheld until relatives are notified.

In central Baghdad, meanwhile, a roadside bomb killed two U.S. soldiers, the military said in a news release.

The two soldiers, who were assigned to Multi-National Division-Baghdad, were walking on patrol Saturday when the bomb exploded, the military said.

The other fatality was a soldier from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division who died Saturday from nonbattle-related injuries while participating in an operation in Kirkuk province in northern Iraq.

Since the war in Iraq began, 2,330 U.S. service members have died. The death toll of 29 in March was the lowest monthly total since 20 troops died in February 2004.

When asked Friday what might be contributing to the decline in deaths among U.S. troops, the commanding general of the Multi-National Division-Baghdad cited several factors.

"What I would tell you is the Iraqi security forces' capability is getting better," U.S. Army Major Gen. James Thurman said. "And I attribute to a lot of the decline in our fatalities is the alertness and the training levels of our soldiers. And I'm very much impressed with that.

"And we worked very hard before we came back into Iraq because we knew what the nature of the fight would be."

Shiite mosque attacked
Insurgent bombers working in the middle of the night destroyed a Shiite mosque in Diyala province, an Iraqi official said on Sunday.

The bombers planted explosives around the small mosque in Kibba village and destroyed the shrine at about 3 a.m., the official with the Diyala Joint Coordination Center said. There were not reports of casualties.

Kibba is about 9 miles (15 kilometers) east of Baquba, the provincial capital.

Also Sunday, insurgents bombed three stores selling music CDs in southern Baquba, the official said. Baquba is about 37 miles (60 kilometers) north of Baghdad.

Diplomats press Iraq lawmakers
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw visited Baghdad, meeting with lawmakers charged with forming an Iraqi government.

On the flight to Baghdad, Straw said that when he visited Iraq five weeks ago, he was assured that a new government would be put together quickly.

"Sadly ... this coalition formation has taken much longer," he said, and cited "significant international concerns" about the delay.

"I think we both understand how hard it is, but the Iraqi people need their government and their leaders, Rice said." (Full story)

Other developments

Jill Carroll boarded a plane in Germany and flew back to the United States on Sunday morning amid controversy over her appearance in a propaganda video made by her former kidnappers. (Full story)


The brother of a prominent Sunni Arab politician was apparently kidnapped last week while driving from Baghdad to Salaheddin province, an official with the Iraq National Dialogue Front said Sunday. The missing man, Taha al-Mutlaq, is the brother of Saleh al-Mutlaq, the head of the Iraqi National Dialogue Front party, which won 11 seats in the parliamentary elections.


Iraqi police found four bodies, all shot in the head, Sunday in various neighborhoods of Baghdad, an official with Baghdad emergency police said.  

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A car bomb in eastern Baghdad killed at least 10 people and wounded 30 others, Baghdad emergency police sources said Monday.

The blast took place near a mosque in the Shaab area, the sources said.

Also Monday, gunmen in the southern city of Basra killed six Sunnis, including a child at a market, a police official said.

Also among the dead -- who were all related -- were two police officers and a naval officer.

The four gunmen opened fire from a passing car, the official said.

Four U.S. troops die in combat
Three U.S. Marines and one sailor have been killed during combat in Anbar province, the U.S. military said Monday.

The four troops, who were assigned to the 2/28 Brigade Combat Team, died Sunday.

Anbar province is an expanse of land west of Baghdad where many Sunni Arabs live in cities like Ramadi and Falluja. It is one of four provinces in Iraq where the insurgency carries out most of its attacks.

Over the weekend, 10 U.S. service members were killed, and the death toll since the war in Iraq began is 2,336.

The weekend toll included two military pilots who died after their helicopter was apparently shot down while on patrol, the U.S. military said Sunday.

The AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter went down west of Yousifia on Saturday evening while conducting a combat air patrol, the U.S. military said in a statement. Officials believe the aircraft was shot down.

"The soldiers' remains were recovered following aircraft-recovery operations at the crash site," the statement said. The names of the pilots are being withheld until relatives are notified.

In central Baghdad, a roadside bomb killed two U.S. soldiers on Saturday, the military said in a news release.

The two soldiers, who were assigned to Multi-National Division-Baghdad, were walking on patrol when the bomb exploded, the military said.

Also, a soldier from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division died Saturday from nonbattle-related injuries while participating in an operation in Kirkuk province in northern Iraq.

Also Saturday, a U.S. Marine died of wounds suffered in combat a day earlier in Anbar province.

Rice: Iraq must pick 'strong leader'
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Monday the next Iraqi prime minister must be a "strong leader" capable of unifying the people of this fractured country.

On the second day of her trip to Baghdad with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, Rice called for Iraqi lawmakers, elected in December, to overcome obstacles and form a new government.

Rice and Straw -- who flew into the Iraqi capital Sunday from northwest England -- have met with Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish politicians. (Full story)

Other developments

Insurgent bombers working in the middle of the night destroyed a Shiite mosque in Diyala province, an Iraqi official said on Sunday, but the U.S. military disputed the report. An official with the Diyala Joint Coordination Center said the bombers destroyed the small shrine in Kibba village about 3 a.m. But U.S. military personnel visited the site and said there had been no bombing, military officials in Baghdad said.


The brother of a prominent Sunni Arab politician was apparently kidnapped last week while driving from Baghdad to Salaheddin province, an official with the Iraq National Dialogue Front said Sunday. The missing man, Taha al-Mutlaq, is the brother of Saleh al-Mutlaq, the head of the Iraqi National Dialogue Front party, which won 11 seats in the parliamentary elections.


Iraqi police found four bodies, all shot in the head, Sunday in various neighborhoods of Baghdad, an official with Baghdad emergency police said.  

 

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Nine more American troops died in Iraq, the U.S. military reported Monday, five of them in a vehicle accident in a remote, rain-soaked western area. Their deaths brought the number of service members killed so far this month to 13 - nearly half the number who died in all of March.

Three more Americans - two Marines and a sailor - were missing in the Sunday accident in which a truck overturned near Asad air base, a U.S. statement said. All the dead were Marines, the statement added.

It gave no reason for the accident except that it was not a result of hostile fire. Heavy rains fell over the area during the weekend.

Also Sunday, three Marines and a sailor were killed by "hostile fire" in Anbar province, which includes the Asad base, the military said. No further details, including the precise location, were released.

 

 
It was the first time that four American troops had been killed in a single attack since Feb. 22, when four soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division died in a bombing in northern Iraq.

Thirty-one U.S. troops died in Iraq in March, the lowest monthly death toll for U.S. forces since February 2004. But the relatively good news quickly became worse on the first day of April, when four troops were killed including two pilots who died when their Apache helicopter crashed.

U.S. officials said the helicopter was probably shot down. The militant al-Rashideen Army claimed responsibility, and Al-Jazeera television aired footage Monday provided by the insurgents which they claimed showed parts of the wreckage.

Although U.S. casualties have been on the decline, deaths among Iraqis have increased because of rising tensions between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. At least 1,038 Iraqi civilians died last month in war-related violence, according to an Associated Press count.

The A-P's Vanessa Arrington was asked if anyone ever claims responsibility for these attacks, and whether Baghdad police are too overwhelmed to investigate.

The AP count showed at least 375 Iraqi civilians killed in December, 608 in January and 741 in February. Most of the increase appeared a result of a sharp rise in the number of civilians found dead throughout Baghdad - apparent victims of sectarian reprisal killings.

The alarming rise in civilian toll has put new urgency into efforts by Iraqi politicians to form a new national unity government following the December elections. That message was delivered by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw during a two-day visit that ended Monday.

"First and foremost, the purpose of this trip is to encourage and to urge the Iraqis to do what the Iraqis must do because the Iraqi people deserve it," Rice said. "But yes, the American people, the British people ... need to know that everything is being done to keep progress moving."

During their visit, Rice and Straw avoided any public call for Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari to step aside as the Shiite nominee for a second term - a key demand of Sunni and Kurdish politicians before they will join a new government.

Nevertheless, the visit clearly increased pressure on al-Jaafari, and for the first time officials of his own Shiite bloc called for him to step down.

Following the visit, al-Jaafari's supporters scrambled Monday to try to rally support for him, even as other politicians sought ways to remove him if he refused to step aside.

"We're waiting to hear the final position of the other blocs," al-Jaafari ally Ali al-Adeeb said. "Then we will study their position and decide. It is still to early for the (Shiites) to decide whether al-Jaafari's nomination should be withdrawn."

Al-Jaafari's critics accuse him of failing to curb the Sunni-dominated insurgency and calm tensions between Sunnis and Shiites. The Feb. 22 bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra triggered a wave of sectarian attacks that threaten to plunge the nation into civil war.

In the latest violence, at least 12 Iraqis were killed Monday in three vehicle bombings in mostly Shiite areas of the capital, police reported.

Ten of the victims died when a suicide driver detonated a truck filled with dates as worshippers were leaving the al-Shroofi mosque after evening prayers. Another 38 people were wounded, police and hospitals said.

Two others were killed in a car bombing in the Sadr City area, in which 10 others were wounded. The third bomb exploded in the central district of Karradah, wounding six, police said.

Late Sunday, four Shiite civilians died when gunmen burst into their home in the religiously mixed Dora district of southwestern Baghdad. Police said the assailants lined up a brother, two sisters and an uncle against a wall and killed them.

The mother of the family was visiting relatives at the time. Police said the father, a grocery shop owner, had been killed six months earlier by gunmen in the same neighborhood
 

London (Reuters) - Iraks designierter Ministerpräsident Ibrahim al-Dschaafari hat Rücktrittsforderungen entschieden zurückgewiesen.

In einem Interview der britischen Zeitung "Guardian" (Mittwochausgabe) betonte der Schiiten-Führer, er sei durch einen demokratischen Prozess nominiert worden. "Und dazu stehe ich. Wir müssen die Demokratie im Irak verteidigen, und es ist die Demokratie, die entscheiden sollte, wer den Irak führt." Kritiker werfen Dschaafari vor, das eigentliche Hemmnis für eine Einigung mit Sunniten und Kurden und damit einem Frieden im Irak zu sein. Daher forderten sie seinen Rücktritt. Die USA und Großbritannien sehen in dem Streit um Dschaafari zudem einen Grund für die schleppende Regierungsbildung im Irak. Sie haben verstärkt auf Fortschritte gedrängt, denn nur so könne ein Abrutschen des Irak in einen Bürgerkrieg verhindert werden.


 

Saddam Hussein will bei Prozess Erklärung abgeben


 Der irakische Ex-Diktator Saddam Hussein muss sich nach dreiwöchiger Unterbrechung heute wieder seinen Richtern stellen.

Der Prozess um die Tötung von 140 Menschen in einem schiitischen Dorf war für die Suche nach weiterem Beweismaterial ausgesetzt worden.

Die Verteidiger küdigten eine Erklärung von Saddam Hussein an. Die Anklage will den früheren Diktator ins Verhör nehmen.  
 

Hussein grins, reads poetry during cross-examination

Wednesday, April 5, 2006 Posted: 1255 GMT (2055 HKT)

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- A grinning and poetic Saddam Hussein was cross-examined for the first time in his trial Wednesday, saying he approved 1980s death sentences against Shiites because they were trying to assassinate him.

Saddam, standing alone as the sole defendant in the courtroom, dodged some questions from prosecutors over his role in a crackdown against Shiites in the 1980s, giving long speeches calling the court "illegitimate." He accused the current Shiite-led Interior Ministry of killing and torturing thousands of Iraqis and bickered with chief judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman.

After a nearly six-hour session, Abdel-Rahman adjourned the session until Thursday.

The session came a day after prosecutors indicted Saddam on separate charges of genocide, accusing him of trying to exterminate Kurds in a 1980s campaign that killed an estimated 100,000 people. The charges will be dealt with in a separate trial. (Watch the former Iraqi leader's demeanor during his first cross-examination -- 3:20)

In the current trial, Saddam and seven former members of his regime are charged in a crackdown against Shiites launched after a 1982 assassination attempt against Saddam in the town of Dujail. In the sweep that followed, 148 Shiites were killed and hundreds were imprisoned, some of them undergoing torture.

Grinning defendant
Throughout Wednesday's questioning, Saddam -- dressed in a black suit and white shirt -- appeared relaxed, frequently shooting grins at chief prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi and even reciting a short bit of poetry to the judge.

Al-Moussawi asked Saddam about his approval for death sentences passed against the 148 by his Revolutionary Court, which prosecutors have argued gave the Shiites only a cursory trial.

"That is one of the duties of the president," Saddam replied. "I had the right to question the judgment. But I was convinced the evidence that was presented was sufficient" to show their guilt in the assassination attempt.

In a previous court session, Saddam acknowledged ordering the trial in which the 148 Shiites were sentenced to death but has maintained his actions were legal because they were in response to the attempt to kill him.

Al-Moussawi asked Saddam if he was aware that 28 of those sentenced to death were under 18 years old and presented identity cards for some of the killed minors. Prosecutors have earlier said an 11-year-old boy was among those killed.

Saddam replied that ID cards can easily be forged.

"There is a clear ulterior motive by those who have given you these documents. You can buy IDs like this in the market," he said. "Is it the responsibility of the head of the state to check the IDs of defendants and see how old he is?"

"I could get a hold of an ID saying Raouf is 25 years old," he added, waving toward the judge.

Al-Moussawi displayed a series of documents that he has previously shown the court -- including an approval of medals for intelligence agents involved in the crackdown and approvals for the razing of Dujail farmlands in retaliation for the assassination attempt. Al-Moussawi repeatedly asked if the signatures on the documents were Saddam's.

But Saddam avoided a direct reply, refusing to confirm the signatures but also stopping short of saying the signatures were forged.

"Any comment, matter or document signed by Saddam Hussein, and it has been proven that the handwriting and the signature are his, then I take the responsibility," he replied.

Video: 'I would chop off their heads'
The prosecutors also showed video they said was taken in the 1980s that showed Saddam talking in an apparent interview about "enemies of the revolution," saying, "I would chop off their heads without one hair of mine shaking ... As for the ranks of the enemies, if someone died during investigations, he has no value."

The video appeared to be taken from an anti-Saddam film, as the scene of Saddam talking was interspliced with scenes of people being beaten. Pressed by the judge, the prosecutor acknowledged the tape was not directly connected to the Dujail case but insisted it was relevant, asking Saddam what he thought about his comments.

Saddam said they were shown out of context and that he was talking about things "outside the borders" at a time Iraq was at war. He dismissed the video as "unrelated to this case."

When defense lawyer Bushra al-Khalil tried to comment on the video, Abdel-Rahman accused her of being out of order and after an argument ordered her out removed from the courtroom.

At the beginning of the session, Saddam launched into a speech in response to the prosecutor's first question, bringing repeated demands by Abdel-Rahman that he answer the question.

Saddam denounced the court as illegitimate, saying "a body whose base and formation is illegitimate and unjust can't pronounce justice. How could anyone imagine that it could issue a verdict on the Iraqi president, who stood as a sharp spear inside the eyes of those who planned and worked to poke Iraq's eyes?"

He also denounced the current, Shiite-controlled Interior Ministry, calling it a body "that kills thousands people on the streets and tortures them." Some Iraqis accuse the ministry of backing Shiite militias that have assassinated Sunni Arabs in a wave of violence since a February 22 bombing of a Shiite shrine in the city of Samarra.

"Don't venture into political matters," Abdel-Rahman replied.

"If you are scared of the interior minister, he doesn't scare my dog," Saddam retorted.

Saddam had been due to testify and be questioned in the last session of the trial, on March 15. But instead, he gave a rambling speech calling on Iraqis to stop sectarian violence and unite to fight American troops. After arguing with Saddam, Abdel-Rahman closed most of the session to the public to allow Saddam to finish his speech.

Saddam and the seven former members of his regime face possible execution by hanging if they are convicted in connection with the crackdown launched in Dujail following a July 8, 1982 shooting attack on Saddam's motorcade in the town.

Tuesday's indictment paves the way for a second trial of Saddam in which he would likely face execution if convicted, though prosecutors have not yet said what sentence they will seek.

He and six other former regime members will be tried for Operation Anfal, the 1988 military campaign launched in the final months of the war with Iran to crush independence-minded Kurdish militias and clear Kurds from the sensitive Iranian border area of northern Iraq.

A memo released by the tribunal Tuesday said the Anfal campaign included "savage military attacks on civilians," including "the use of mustard gas and nerve agents ... to kill and maim rural villagers and to drive them out of their homes
 

Saddam Hussein: "Bin voll und ganz verantwortlich"


 Der irakische Ex-Staatschef Saddam Hussein hat sich für alle seine Entscheidungen als Präsident verantwortlich erklärt. "Ich bin voll und ganz verantwortlich für jedes Dokument, das meine Unterschrift trägt", sagte Saddam Hussein heute vor dem Sondertribunal in Bagdad.

Der Ex-Machthaber reagierte damit auf den im Prozess erhobenen Vorwurf, in dem schiitischen Dorf Dudschail seien nach einem fehlgeschlagenen Attentat gegen ihn auch Obstgärten zerstört worden.

In dem Verfahren gegen Saddam Hussein und sieben Mitangeklagte geht es um die Tötung von mehr als 140 Menschen aus der Ortschaft im Jahr 1982 und die Repressionen gegen das Dorf.

"Selbst wenn man mir den Kopf abschlägt"

Erstmals trat im Gerichtssaal ein ägyptischer Verteidiger auf. Dieser erklärte, Saddam Hussein habe nach der irakischen Verfassung das Recht gehabt, die Todesurteile zu unterzeichnen, nachdem man in Dudschail versucht hatte, ihn zu ermorden.

"Wenn es um meine gesetzliche und verfassungsgemäße Verantwortung geht, dann erhebe ich das Haupt und erkläre meine Verantwortung, selbst wenn man mir den Kopf abschlägt", sagte der Ex-Präsident. Nach einem heftigen Wortwechsel mit dem Gerichtsvorsitzenden Rauf Abdel Rahman wurde das Verfahren bis zum Nachmittag vertagt.

 

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi forces have captured the prime suspect in the kidnapping of Italian journalist Guiliana Sgrena, the U.S. military said on Thursday

The statement said Muhammad al-Ubaydi, a former senior intelligence official under Saddam Hussein with close ties to the al-Qaeda leader in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was arrested on March 7.

Sgrena was released last year but an Italian intelligence officer escorting her to freedom was shot and killed by U.S. forces.

The military said Ubaydi was the former aide to the Chief of Staff of intelligence under Saddam and now heads a group it identified as the Secret Islamic Army in northern Babel province.

The U.S. military has often said it has captured key Zarqawi aides and less senior associates of the Jordanian militant who has claimed responsibility for some of the most spectacular suicide bombings in Iraq.

Iraqi Interior Minister Bayan Jabor has said Zarqawi is too weak to do any more serious damage in Iraq but that assessment has been challenged by western intelligence officials.

(IRAQ-CAPTURE, editing by Giles Elgood))

 

Dubai (Reuters) - Irakische Extremisten haben am Mittwoch ein Video veröffentlicht, auf dem angeblich tote US-Piloten zu sehen sind.

Die Bilder zeigen der zum Extremistennetzwerk Al-Kaida gehörenden Gruppe zufolge, wie Extremisten die brennende Leiche eines Piloten aus einem Hubschrauber-Wrack ziehen. Nach Angaben des US-Militärs kamen zwei Piloten ums Leben, als ihr Helikopter am Samstag südwestlich von Bagdad abstürzte.

Das Video wurde auf einer Internet-Seite veröffentlicht, die häufig von Extremisten benutzt wird. Die Authentizität des Filmes konnte jedoch nicht sofort bestätigt werden. Auch war unklar, ob es sich bei der Leiche wirklich um den Körper eines der US-Piloten handelte. Die Kleidung war bis zur Unkenntlichkeit zerrissen.

 

Rumsfeld düpiert Rice

Zwist in der Bush-Regierung: Nach dem Eingeständnis von US-Außenministerin Rice, die USA hätten in der Irak-Politik taktische Fehler begangen, schwingt Verteidigungsminister Rumsfeld die verbale Keule: Rice offenbare ein mangelndes Verständnis von Krieg.


Washington - Donald Rumsfeld distanzierte sich von den selbstkritischen Äußerungen seiner Kabinettskollegin Condoleezza Rice. Zur Aussage der Außenministerin, die USA hätten im Irak "tausende" taktische Fehler begangen, sagte Rumsfeld in einem Rundfunkinterview: "Um ganz ehrlich zu sein, ich weiß nicht, wovon sie geredet hat", sagte er in einem Rundfunkinterview. Dem Lokalsender "WDAY" in North Dakota sagte Rumsfeld weiter: "Wenn jemand von taktischen Fehlern spricht, glaube ich, liegt das an mangelndem Verständnis von Krieg, so wie ich ihn verstehe." Keine Militärstrategie sei starr festgelegt. Nach dem "Kontakt mit dem Feind" würden Taktiken, Techniken und Vorgehen vielmehr laufend geändert.

Das Interview wurde bereits am Dienstag geführt, gestern veröffentlichte das Verteidigungsministerium eine Mitschrift. Rice selbst hatte ihr erstaunliches Eingeständnis nachträglich zu relativieren versucht. Die US-Regierung habe Fehler gemacht, es sei aber sicher kein Fehler gewesen, den irakischen Machthaber Saddam Hussein zu stürzen, sagte Rice am Samstag dem britischen Rundfunksender BBC.

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and Britain on Thursday turned up the pressure on Iraqi leaders to form a government of national unity, with Britain's defense minister saying delays only served to help terrorists.

"There is a great deal of urgency about this," John Reid said during a joint Pentagon briefing with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

"I think it is the most important thing on the agenda in Iraq, which is to respond to the efforts of the terrorists to divide by terrorism by uniting through democracy."

President Bush, speaking after a weekend visit to Baghdad by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her British counterpart, Jack Straw, said Rice's message to Iraqi leaders was to "get moving" in resolving their differences.

"The (Iraqi) people want there to be a unity government. It requires leadership, for people to stand up and take the lead. So we're working with them to get this unity government up and running," Bush said in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Amid sectarian violence, Iraqi leaders have been unable to fashion a new government since December 15 parliamentary elections. U.S. officials have urged the creation of a "unity government" distributing power among Iraq's rival Shi'ites, Sunnis and Kurds.

"Terrorists love a vacuum. I know that from my own experience in Northern Ireland. And it's the same throughout the world," Reid said.

"So the longer this goes, the more pleased the terrorists would be because it gives them the opportunity to intervene with acts of violence and, secondly, because they will claim it is an illustration of the inability of politicians in Iraq to come together," Reid added.

Rice and Straw told Iraqi leaders on Monday the lack of a government nearly four months after elections was undermining security.

More than three years after they led an invasion of Iraq in March 2003, the United States has about 132,000 troops there and Britain has around 9,000, fighting a tenacious insurgency.

 

lt. Pentagon...


http://www.defenselink.mil/news/casualty.pdf


füx  

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Three suicide bombers -- two of whom were disguised as Shiite women -- struck a Baghdad mosque affiliated with a major Shiite political party Friday, killing at least 74 people, according to the Iraqi Health Ministry.

Another 140 people were wounded, authorities said.

The attack occurred a day after a bomb killed 10 people and wounded more than three dozen others near the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, the holy Shiite city in south-central Iraq. (Full story)

The attacks in Najaf and Baghdad have heightened fears that Iraq's Shiite militias, which have been blamed for a number of reprisal attacks on Sunnis, could retaliate. The militias have said that if Iraqi security forces can't protect them, they will protect themselves.

The blasts Friday went off more than three hours after noon prayers, as people were leaving, and because of the mosque's prominence and the importance of Friday prayers, many worshippers were at the holy site.

The Buratha Mosque in northern Baghdad has ties with the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, part of the Shiite-led United Iraqi Alliance, the coalition that won a plurality in the December 15 parliamentary elections.

The mosque's imam is Sheikh Jalaluddin al-Saghir, a member of parliament affiliated with the Shiite alliance.

Abdel-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of SCIRI, said his group urges restraint after attacks like these, but there is only so much that the leaders can do.

"For three years, we've been bearing the slaughtering, killing and attacking of our scholars, our mosques, our facilities, our pilgrims, our barbers, our bakers, our innocents," al-Hakim said. "We're always talking to our people to restrain themselves.

"Gradually, people will start not to obey. Revenge actions are a real danger."

The bombers -- all of whom were wearing suicide vests -- were men, but two were dressed like Shiite women, wearing long black abaya robes, according to the Iraqi Interior Ministry.

The attack started when a bomber detonated his explosives outside the site, as worshippers were leaving.

In the ensuing panic, two bombers disguised as the women ran with the crowd toward the mosque. One detonated his explosives at the main entrance, and the other in a hallway, authorities said. (Watch worshippers vent their anger after the blasts -- 2:37)

Security is tight in and around the mosque, but Shiite women heading into the facility usually aren't searched.

News video showed ambulances and pickup trucks hauling the injured away.

Police originally thought three mortars had caused the explosions.

Warning of possible attacks
The Iraqi Interior Ministry had issued warnings about possible attacks Friday, which precedes two significant days. Sunday marks the third anniversary of the toppling of Saddam Hussein's regime, and Monday honors the birthday of the Prophet Mohammed.

SCIRI spokesman Haitham al-Husseini condemned the mosque attack as "horrible" and reiterated the need for angry people to show proper restraint.

"We do have full confidence in the Iraqi people to stay calm and to face the terrorism always, and not to be led by them," he said.

Calling the attack "vicious," Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. ambassador to Iraq, offered condolences and exhorted Iraqis to "exercise restraint."

"The terrorists who seek to murder innocent people who worship at Iraq's holy sites and religious institutions are the enemies of all faiths and of all humanity. The United States condemns this cowardly act in the strongest possible terms," Khalilzad said in a written statement.

He said the U.S. government will "do everything in its power" to help the Iraqi government bring those responsible to justice.

Sunni-Shiite sectarian violence has escalated since the bombing February 22 of Al-Askariya Mosque, a revered Shiite shrine in Samarra, north of Baghdad. That strike, blamed on Sunni insurgents, generated Shiite reprisals and Sunni counterreprisals.

U.S. and British officials have urged Iraqi leaders to end a political stalemate and quickly form a national unity government to ensure the establishment of law and order.

The United Iraqi Alliance and a Kurdish coalition have dominated the transitional government since January 2005.

The former's choice of Ibrahim al-Jaafari as prime minister of the permanent government is a key factor in the stalemate. Sunnis, Kurds and secular Shiites oppose al-Jaafari's nomination and want another candidate.

U.S. military probes civilian's death
A mortar round fired by American soldiers accidentally killed a civilian this week in northwestern Iraq, the U.S. military said Friday.

The military said the death is under investigation. The killing took place Wednesday near a village west of Tal Afar.

"Soldiers from 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division were firing mortars at a suspected terrorist location when the incident occurred. The round fell short of the intended target and killed the man," a military statement said.

Other developments

An American service member died from wounds Friday in a small-arms attack while on patrol in western Baghdad, the U.S. military said. Two troops also died Thursday, the military said: a soldier killed by a roadside blast in Baiji;, and a Marine killed in combat in Anbar province, west of the capital. The number of U.S. troops killed in the Iraq war stands at 2,347.


An Iraqi considered the prime suspect in the 2005 kidnapping of Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena has been captured, U.S.-led multinational military forces said Thursday. Muhammed Hila Hammad Ubaydi was caught March 7, but the announcement of his capture was delayed until DNA testing could verify his identity, the military said. Sgrena was kidnapped in Baghdad in February 2005 before being freed a month later after Italian agent Nicola Calipari negotiated her release. He was escorting her to Baghdad International Airport when U.S. troops shot him to death at a checkpoint. The United States said the shooting was an accident; Italy has disputed that conclusion.  

Vize-Innenminister Kamal sieht Irak im Bürgerkrieg


 Erstmals hat ein Mitglied der irakischen Regierung die anhaltende politisch motivierte Gewalt als Bürgerkrieg bezeichnet. Seit zwölf Monaten herrsche im Irak ein "unerklärter Bürgerkrieg", sagte Vize-Innenminister Hussein Ali Kamal gestern dem arabischen Dienst des britischen Rundfunksenders BBC.

Täglich würden Schiiten, Sunniten, Kurden und Christen umgebracht, nur sei der Bürgerkrieg von den "beteiligten Parteien nicht offiziell erklärt worden", fuhr Kamal fort.

Auch Mubarak warnt

Ähnlich äußerte sich auch der ägyptische Präsident Hosni Mubarak, der zugleich davor warnte, dass der "Bügerkrieg" im Irak sich auf die "ganze Region" ausweiten könnte. "Wenn die Amerikaner jetzt abzögen, wäre das eine Katastrophe, weil sich der Krieg verschlimmern würde", sagte Mubarak dem arabischen Nachrichtensender Al Arabiya. Er sehe derzeit keine Lösung für die Probleme im Irak, das Land sei "praktisch zerstört".

Seit am 22. Februar ein schiitisches Mausoleum in Samarra durch einen Anschlag zerstört wurde, kamen bei dadurch motivierten Gewalttaten rund 500 Iraker ums Leben. Alleine am Freitag wurden bei einem Selbstmordanschlag auf eine schiitische Moschee in Bagdad 79 Menschen getötet.
 

US-Bericht zeichnet ein düsteres Bild von der Lage im ...

Washington (dpa) - Ein von der New York Times veröffentlichter interner Bericht der US-Regierung zeichnet ein düsteres Bild der Situation im Irak. Nach dem nicht als geheim eingestuften zehnseitige Papier ist die Stabilität in 6 der 18 Provinzen ernst und in einer kritisch . Das Dokument trage das Datum 31. Januar und ist damit drei Wochen vor dem Anschlag auf das schiitische Heiligtum in Samarra erstellt worden. Der Bericht komme von der US-Botschaft und der US- Militärführung in Bagdad.