Sameer N. Yacoub
Gunmen attack bus in Iraq, killing 2 people
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say gunmen have attacked a bus northeast of Baghdad, killing two people and wounding seven.
Police officials say the Wednesday morning attack took place when gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying daily laborers who were on their way to a construction site near the city of Baqouba.
Baqouba is a former Sunni insurgent stronghold located some 60 kilometers (35 miles) northeast of the Iraqi capital.
A local medic confirmed the casualties. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
Although the level of violence has ebbed in Iraq, deadly attacks on security forces and civilians are still common.
Bomb blasts at bird market in Baghdad kill 4
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say three bombs have struck a bird market in eastern Baghdad, killing four people and wounding dozens.
Police officials say the Friday morning attack targeted a bird market crowded with shoppers in the Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City. They say 34 people were wounded in the blasts.
A hospital official confirmed the casualty tolls. All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the media.
Violence has ebbed in Iraq, but insurgents carry out frequent attacks on security forces and civilians in an attempt to undermine the Shiite-led government.
Iraqi lawmaker escapes assassination attempt
BAGHDAD (AP) — A Sunni lawmaker says he escaped an assassination attempt when gunmen ambushed his convoy north of the Iraqi capital.
Falah al-Naqeeb, a member the Sunni-backed Iraqiya parliament bloc, said over the phone on Tuesday that gunmen sprayed the cars with bullets in the Sunni-dominated area of Taji, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) from Baghdad.
Al-Naqeeb says no one in his convoy was hurt and demanded the government investigate the Monday night attack.
A police officer confirmed the attack. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media.
The attack is the latest report of violence as political tensions are growing amid a power struggle between the Shiite-led government and Sunni politicians.
Iraq: Blast kills Shiite mayor, 4 family members
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials say a bombing has killed the Shiite mayor of a town northwest of Baghdad along with his wife and three children.
Police say the blast late Wednesday targeted the home of the mayor of the town of Mafraq near Baqouba, a former al-Qaida stronghold about 35 miles (60 kilometers) from the capital.
Police said Thursday the mayor, his wife, two sons and daughter were killed.
A medic at Baqouba hospital confirmed the death toll.
Authorities also said that leaflets were distributed earlier this week in Baqouba telling Shiites to leave the city or face death.
All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to brief the media.
Sunni insurgents launch frequent attacks on Shiites in an attempt to revive sectarian fighting in the country.
Iraq says terrorist cell dismantled
Handcuffed suspects seen in the federal police headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, April 8, 2012. Iraqi officials say they have arrested a ring of insurgents allegedly involved in attacks in Baghdad. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban) (Credit: AP) BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi security forces have arrested members of an al-Qaida-linked insurgent cell responsible for deadly attacks and robberies in Baghdad, a police official said Sunday.
Lt. Col. Nimir Sultan Halan, the head of a police intelligence unit, said that the dismantled 25-person cell belongs to Ansar al-Islam, a radical Sunni Arab group linked to al-Qaida. He did not say when the actual arrest took place.
Ansar al-Islam had previously threatened to attack the Arab League summit in Baghdad and any political or business officials associated with it. The summit, held last month, was almost violence-free.
Continue Reading CloseOfficials: 13 killed in bombings across Iraq
BAGHDAD (AP) — Thirteen people were killed in bombings across Iraq on Tuesday, authorities said, in a spate of violence that officials had expected in the days before Baghdad hosts the Arab world’s top leaders.
The attacks in four cities — Baghdad, the northern city of Kirkuk and two southern towns — largely appeared to target police forces.
Of the dead, three were policemen and the bombings struck at security patrols in Baghdad and the town of Latifiyah, about 20 miles (30 kilometers) south of the Iraqi capital. A car bomb also exploded outside a police headquarters in Kirkuk, 180 miles (290 kilometers) north of Baghdad.
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