BAGHDAD, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A series of bomb attacks
since late Sunday have killed at least 20 people and wounded some 91 others,
just days before the U.S. troops are to leave Iraqi cities and towns, raising
fears that Iraqi security forces is not able to fight relentless insurgency.
A booby-trapped car parked in Baghdad central
district of Karrada was detonated, killing five people and wounding 20 others,
while three people were killed and 30 wounded when a roadside bomb ripped
through a popular marketplace in northeast Baghdad's Shaab district, the police
said.
An Iraqi policeman inspects the site of
a bomb attack in Baghdad June 22, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters
Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
Another roadside bomb struck a KIA minibus carrying
passengers near al-Hamza Square in Baghdad's eastern neighborhood of Sadr City,
killing three people and wounding 12 others, the police added.
In west of Baghdad, a suicide car bomber struck a
local municipality building and a nearby police station in the town of Abu
Ghraib on Monday afternoon, killing seven policemen and wounding 13 people, a
local police source said.
The attacker hit a checkpoint outside the local
government compound in the mainly Sunni town, some 20 km west of Baghdad, he
said.
The blast which destroyed part of the compound
buildings, occurred during the presence of U.S. troops, he added.
The source could not provide further details about
the incident as the U.S. troops have sealed off the area.
Meanwhile, residents of the town said the U.S.
soldiers also sustained some casualties, but the U.S. military has no immediate
comment on the attack.
Also on Monday, three people were wounded in a
roadside bomb explosion in the neighborhood of al-Habibiyah in eastern Baghdad.
Late Sunday, two people were killed and 13 others injured in a bomb explosion
inside a coffee shop in Baghdad's southern neighborhood of Abu Dsheer, according
to the police.
The latest attacks followed one of the most deadliest
bombings in several months when a massive truck bomb explosion killed up to 73
people and wounded more than 180 others, destroying over 50 clay homes in Taza
impoverished Shiite slum in the city of Kirkuk, some 250 km north of Baghdad.
Violence in Iraqi cities has dropped dramatically in
recent months, but analysts expect that daily attacks will increase ahead of
parliamentary election due in January as the Iraqi political parties are
expected to struggle for power in the oil-rich country.
The new parliament will form a new government for the
next four years.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has warned
earlier that militant groups will work hard to stage more attacks to reverse
security gains ahead of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from urban Iraqi areas by
the end of this month.
"They (militant groups) are preparing themselves to
move in the dark to destabilize the situation, but, with God willing, I and you
will be ready for them," Maliki said.
The recent rise of deadly attacks cast doubt on the
ability of Iraqi security forces to take over from U.S. troops in controlling
security and defeating insurgency of both Shiite and Sunni militant groups in
the war-torn country.
As part of a security pact signed between Baghdad and
Washington last year, U.S. troops will withdraw from Iraq's cities, towns and
villages by June 30, 2009 to their bases, and will leave the country on Dec. 31,
2011.
KIRKUK, Iraq, June 21 (Xinhua) -- A truck bomb explosion
on Saturday killed up to 70 people, including many women and children, and
injured more than 180 others in the ethnically mixed city of Kirkuk in northern
Iraq, a local police source said on Sunday.
"The latest reports of yesterday's truck bombing said that
70 people were killed and more than 180 others were injured," the source told
Xinhua on condition of anonymity. Full story
BAGHDAD, June 20 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri
al-Maliki said Saturday that the U.S. troops' withdrawal from Iraqi cities and
towns by the end of this month would be a "great victory" for Iraqis.
"It is a great victory for Iraqis as we are going to
take our first step toward ending the foreign presence in Iraq," Maliki said
during a conference in Baghdad for leaders of ethnic Turkmen minority. Full story
TIKRIT, Iraq, June 17 (Xinhua) -- The Chief Police of
Salahudin Province north of Baghdad said Wednesday that his forces are ready to
take over the security control ahead of the coming pullout of U.S. troops from
Iraqi cities and towns by the end of June. Full story
BAGHDAD, June 15 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. troops commander in
Iraq on Monday said the United States was "absolutely committed" to the pullout
of its troops from Iraqi cities and towns by the end of this month. Full story
A U.S. and Iraqi soldier look at a bird during a joint military operation in the town of Jalawla, in Diyala province, 115 km (70 miles) northeast of Baghdad May 17, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
BAGHDAD, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. military said on Saturday that over 100 military bases have been handed over to Iraqi security forces ahead of the June 30 deadline for U.S. combat troops to pull out from Iraqi cities and town as part of a landmark security pact.
A U.S. military statement said a joint U.S. and Iraqi committee, tasked with monitoring the implementation of U.S.-Iraq security agreement, highlighted progress achieved in Iraq during its third meeting, including "the return of over 100 bases and the safe and orderly release of over 3,000 detainees" since the implementation of the pact. Full story
