Troops opened fire yesterday on two explosives-laden trucks that tried to plow through a Polish military camp south of Baghdad, triggering blasts that killed four people -- including the two drivers and two Iraqis -- and wounded 54 people.
The wounded in the apparent suicide attack included 23 soldiers -- 10 Hungarians, 12 Poles, and an American -- and 31 civilians, officials in Baghdad and Warsaw said.
It occurred as members of the country's Iraqi Governing Council continued to push aside the US idea of holding regional caucuses to elect an interim government after the planned June 30 hand over.
The bombing happened after 7:15am when a pair of trucks loaded with explosives tried to drive near the front of Camp Charlie in Hillah. Guards fired at the vehicles, causing one to explode, said Lieutenant Colonel Robert Strzelecki. Another truck struck a concrete barrier and exploded, damaging a nearby house.
Poland leads a multinational force of about 9,500 soldiers in south-central Iraq. Its troops also fought in the US-led war that began March 20 to oust former president Saddam Hussein. Hungary has 300 troops in Iraq providing logistical support and humanitarian aid.
Hungarian Defense Ministry Spokesman Istvan Bocskai said two of the Hungarian soldiers were seriously wounded, but the injuries weren't life threatening.
"One of them is being treated in Baghdad and the other in Babylon," he said, adding Hungary had no plans to withdraw the soldiers. Camp Babylon is the Polish headquarters here.
A Polish officer was killed in last November, the first Polish soldier killed in combat since the aftermath of World War II.
More than 280 people have been killed in suicide attacks across Iraq since the beginning of the year. Yesterday's attack occurred a week after two suicide vehicle bombings -- against an Iraqi police station in Iskandariyah and an army recruiting station in Baghdad -- that killed more than 100 people.
Since the beginning of the year 109 people have been killed in Irbil and 100 in separate attacks in Baghdad and Iskandariyah.
In Baghdad, Mouwafak al-Rubaie, a Shiite Arab member of the Governing Council, said yesterday that the idea of using caucuses was "gone with the wind," adding that the only solution palatable to Iraqis are general elections.
"Anything else will make things worse and the results will be damaging to Iraq," he said. "Only elections will give the legitimacy needed for any future political process or body."
The US also unveiled a list of 32 wanted people included suspected cell leaders, former members of Saddam's military and regional Baath leaders thought to be helping the insurgency.
Atop the list, with a US$1 million reward, is Mohammed Yunis al-Ahmad, a former top Baath Party official. Rewards between US$50,000 and US$200,000 were offered for the others.
Until now, US officials have not made public a list of suspected leaders of the insurgency that erupted after the regime's collapse and has killed more American soldiers than did the invasion that toppled Saddam.
Also see story:
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off Yilan at 11:05pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter was located at sea, about 32.3km east of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 72.8km, CWA data showed There were no immediate reports of damage. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Yilan County area on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. It measured 4 in other parts of eastern, northern and central Taiwan as well as Tainan, and 3 in Kaohsiung and Pingtung County, and 2 in Lienchiang and Penghu counties and 1
FOREIGN INTERFERENCE: Beijing would likely intensify public opinion warfare in next year’s local elections to prevent Lai from getting re-elected, the ‘Yomiuri Shimbun’ said Internal documents from a Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company indicated that China has been using the technology to intervene in foreign elections, including propaganda targeting Taiwan’s local elections next year and presidential elections in 2028, a Japanese newspaper reported yesterday. The Institute of National Security of Vanderbilt University obtained nearly 400 pages of documents from GoLaxy, a company with ties to the Chinese government, and found evidence that it had apparently deployed sophisticated, AI-driven propaganda campaigns in Hong Kong and Taiwan to shape public opinion, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. GoLaxy provides insights, situation analysis and public opinion-shaping technology by conducting network surveillance
Taiwan is gearing up to celebrate the New Year at events across the country, headlined by the annual countdown and Taipei 101 fireworks display at midnight. Many of the events are to be livesteamed online. See below for lineups and links: Taipei Taipei’s New Year’s Party 2026 is to begin at 7pm and run until 1am, with the theme “Sailing to the Future.” South Korean girl group KARA is headlining the concert at Taipei City Hall Plaza, with additional performances by Amber An (安心亞), Nick Chou (周湯豪), hip-hop trio Nine One One (玖壹壹), Bii (畢書盡), girl group Genblue (幻藍小熊) and more. The festivities are to
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display. South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks struck midnight in Auckland, with a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball was to drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from the 240m Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s
RSS