Two suicide bombers blew themselves up outside Iraq's Interior Ministry in Baghdad yesterday, killing at least seven people and wounding 35, police and ministry sources said.
A ceremony celebrating the 84th anniversary of the formation of the Iraqi police force was taking place at the police academy next door to the ministry at the time of the blast.
An Iraqi state television correspondent who attended the ceremony said one mortar bomb had hit the parade ground while a suicide bomber had blown himself up at a checkpoint outside the Interior Ministry.
The ministry has been attacked by insurgents on several previous occasions. It has become a symbol of hatred for Sunni Arab insurgents who accuse it of running Shiite militia that target the minority Sunni Arab community. The ministry denies such charges.
In November, US troops found a bunker run by the Interior Ministry containing 170 prisoners, most of whom were Sunni Arabs. Many showed signs they had been abused and tortured.
black hawk down
A US Army Black Hawk helicopter went down in northern Iraq, killing all 12 Americans believed to be aboard in the deadliest crash in nearly a year, while five US Marines died in weekend attacks, the military said.
The latest deaths followed an especially bloody week in which about 200 Iraqis and a dozen US troops were killed.
US military officials said on Sunday the UH-60 Black Hawk crashed just before midnight on Saturday about 11km east of Tal Afar, a northern city near the Syrian border that has seen heavy fighting with insurgents.
"All [those killed] are believed to be US citizens," military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Barry Johnson said.
He did not say what caused the crash, but bad weather has wracked most of Iraq.
The military yesterday said eight service members and four civilians were on the flight.
The Black Hawk was part of a two-helicopter team providing support for the 101st Airborne Division and was flying between bases when communications were lost, the military said. After a search, the helicopter was found about noon on Sunday, it said.
arms attacks
Three Marines were killed on Sunday by small arms attacks in Fallujah, 64km west of Baghdad, the military said. Two other Marines were killed on Saturday by roadside bombs in separate incidents, the military said.
With the latest Marine deaths, at least 2,199 members of the US military have died since the war started in 2003, according to an AP count. That toll did not include those killed aboard the Black Hawk.
In violence on Monday, gunmen assassinated an investigative judge in Kirkuk, police Capt. Farhad Talabani said. In Baghdad, gunmen fired on three people working on Iraq's de-Baathification commission, killing one person and wounding two, police Capt. Qassim Hussein said.
Five people died in separate attacks in Baghdad on Sunday, including a policeman killed by a suicide car bomber targeting an Interior Ministry patrol. Seven others were wounded.
A feud has broken out between the top leaders of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party on whether to maintain close ties with Russia. The AfD leader Alice Weidel this week slammed planned visits to Russia by some party lawmakers, while coleader Tino Chrupalla voiced a defense of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The unusual split comes at a time when mainstream politicians have accused the anti-immigration AfD of acting as stooges for the Kremlin and even spying for Russia. The row has also erupted in a year in which the AfD is flying high, often polling above the record 20 percent it
Ecuadorans are today to vote on whether to allow the return of foreign military bases and the drafting of a new constitution that could give the country’s president more power. Voters are to decide on the presence of foreign military bases, which have been banned on Ecuadoran soil since 2008. A “yes” vote would likely bring the return of the US military to the Manta air base on the Pacific coast — once a hub for US anti-drug operations. Other questions concern ending public funding for political parties, reducing the number of lawmakers and creating an elected body that would
The latest batch from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s e-mails illustrates the extraordinary scope of his contacts with powerful people, ranging from a top Trump adviser to Britain’s ex-prince Andrew. The US House of Representatives is expected to vote this week on trying to force release of evidence gathered on Epstein by law enforcement over the years — including the identities of the men suspected of participating in his alleged sex trafficking ring. However, a slew of e-mails released this week have already opened new windows to the extent of Epstein’s network. These include multiple references to US President Donald
CHARGES: The former president, who maintains his innocence, was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for a failed coup bid, as well as an assassination plot Far-right former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is running out of options to avoid prison, after judges on Friday rejected his appeal against a 27-year sentence for a botched coup bid. Bolsonaro lost the 2022 elections and was convicted in September for his efforts to prevent Brazlian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking power after the polls. Prosecutors said the scheme — which included plans to assassinate Lula and a top Brazilian Supreme Court judge — failed only due to a lack of support from military top brass. A panel of Supreme Court judges weighing Bolsonaro’s appeal all voted to uphold
RSS