Close Iraq kidnappings thwarted, US says by Friday 12 May 2006 5:12 AM GMT
The US military announced the deaths of eight soldiers US and Iraqi forces rescued seven Sunni Arab men seized by suspected Shia militiamen near Baghdad, the US military said. Thursday's hostage rescue occurred in two Sunni villages near Khan Bani Saad, 40 km (25 miles) northeast of Baghdad. Iraqi police said the trouble started when dozens of gunmen, some of them wearing military uniforms, raided the villages and abducted 10 young men. Village leaders and clerics alerted police and US soldiers, who rushed to the scene, clashed with the gunmen and rescued seven of the hostages, police said. Three others were missing and presumed taken away by gunmen, police said. US troops killed one kidnapper and wounded another, said Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Fisher, commander of the 1st Battalion, 68th Armor. Some of the hostages had been severely beaten, he told Associated Press TV News. More than 30 people were taken into custody, Iraqi police said, and interrogators were trying to determine their identities. Some gunmen told police they belong to the militia loyal to radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, Iraqi authorities said. Increase in kidnappings Sectarian tensions have led to a rise in violence against civilians Kidnappings are believed to have risen steadily since the US-led invasion of 2003. A study by the Brookings Institution estimated that 30 to 40 Iraqis were kidnapped per day in the Baghdad area during March, compared with two a day in the capital in January 2004. With the rise in sectarian tensions, much of the violence has shifted from Sunni insurgent strongholds such as Anbar province to Baghdad and other areas with a mixed population. The shift has affected civilians, many of whom have been targeted simply because of their religious affiliation. According to the Health Ministry, 952 people were killed nationwide last month in "terrorist" violence, among them 686 civilians. By comparison, ministry figures stated that 548 civilians were killed nationwide in January, 545 in February and 769 in March. Iraq's president, Jalal Talabani, has appealed to clerics to condemn sectarian violence, which has raised fears of civil war. US military deaths The US command also announced the deaths of eight American soldiers, five of whom died in situations unrelated to enemy action. Three of the soldiers were killed on Thursday when roadside bombs hit two US Army convoys southwest of Baghdad, the military said. The US command also announced that a US soldier died Tuesday from non- combat related wounds. In addition, four US Marines died on Thursday when their tank rolled off a bridge into a canal and they drowned, the military said. The accident happened near Karmah, 80 km (50 miles) west of Baghdad in Anbar Province. The eight deaths raised to 2,434 the number of members of the US military who have died since the Iraq war began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. Women mourn over the coffin of Widad al-Shimri during her funeral In other violence Thursday, according to police: At least 14 people were killed in Baghdad, including five municipal street cleaners in an explosion. A Shia professor, Widad al-Shimri, and her 7-year-old daughter were slain as they drove through Baqouba. A professor of Islamic law, Khalaf al-Jumaili, was shot dead after assailants stopped his car in Fallujah. One police officer was killed when gunmen fired on a police station in Kirkuk. Police killed a man who tried to plant a bomb under the car of Baqouba's mayor. The Associated Press By You can find this article at: http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/572805DC-D76B-4993-95B7- 8B7B8CF13B8D.htm Close ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Home is just a click away. Make Yahoo! your home page now. http://us.click.yahoo.com/DHchtC/3FxNAA/yQLSAA/uTGrlB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] List owner : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
