Iraq Attacks Across Baghdad Kill 65, Wound Hundreds

[Flatbush Zombies]

BAGHDAD -- A wave of bombings tore through Iraq on Tuesday, killing 65 people on eve of the 10th anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion and showing how unstable Iraq remains more than a year after the withdrawal of American troops.

It was the deadliest day of attacks in Iraq since Sept. 9, when insurgents unleashed an onslaught of bombings and shootings across the country that left 92 dead.

Violence has ebbed sharply since the peak of Sunni-Shiite fighting that pushed the country to the brink of civil war in 2006-2007. But insurgents maintain the ability to stage high-profile attacks while sectarian and ethnic rivalries continue to tear at the fabric of national unity.

The symbolism of Tuesday's attacks was strong, coming 10 years to the day, Washington time, that former President George W. Bush announced the start of hostilities against Iraq. It was already early March 20, 2003, in Iraq when the airstrikes began.

The military action quickly ousted Saddam Hussein but led to years of bloodshed as Sunni and Shiite militants battled U.S. forces and each other, leaving nearly 4,500 Americans and more than 100,000 Iraqis killed.

A decade later, Iraq's long-term stability and the strength of its democracy remain open questions.

The country is unquestionably freer and more democratic than it was during Saddam's murderous reign. But instead of a solidly pro-U.S. regime, the Iraqis have a Shiite-led government that is arguably closer to Tehran than to Washington and is facing an outpouring of anger by the Sunni minority that was dominant under Saddam and at the heart of the insurgency.

Tuesday's apparently coordinated attacks included car bombs and explosives stuck to the underside of vehicles. They targeted government security forces and mainly Shiite areas, small restaurants, day laborers and bus stops over a span of more than two hours, according to police and hospital officials.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blasts, but they bore hallmarks of al-Qaida in Iraq. The terror group, which favors car bombs and coordinated bombings intended to undermine public confidence in the government, has sought to reassert its presence in recent weeks.

The violence started at around 8 a.m. Tuesday, when a bomb exploded outside a popular restaurant in Baghdad's Mashtal neighborhood, killing four people, according to police and hospital officials. It blew out the eatery's windows and left several cars mangled in the blood-streaked street.

Minutes later, a roadside bomb hit a gathering point for day laborers in the New Baghdad area, killing two of them.

The sprawling Shiite slum district of Sadr City was hit by three explosions that killed 10 people, including three commuters on a minibus.

Hussein Abdul-Khaliq, a government employee who lives in Sadr city, said he heard an explosion and went out to find the minibus on fire.

"We helped take some trapped women and children from outside the burning bus before the arrival of the rescue teams. Our clothes were covered with blood as we tried to rescue the trapped people or to move out the bodies," he said. "Today's attacks are new proof that the politicians and security officials are a huge failure."

The deadliest attack was a 10 a.m. car bombing near the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs in Baghdad's eastern Qahira neighborhood, which killed seven people.

Another car bomb exploded outside a restaurant near one of the main gates to the fortified Green Zone, which houses major government offices and the U.S. and British embassies, killing six people, including two soldiers. Thick black smoke could be seen rising from the area as ambulances raced to the scene.

Just north of the capital, a mortar shell landed near a clinic north of Baghdad in Taji, killing two people, while a roadside bomb hit an army patrol in Tarmiyah, killing a soldier. Another roadside bomb missed a police patrol in Baqouba, hitting a passing car. One passenger was killed.

A car bomb also exploded near a bus stop south of the capital in Iskandiriyah, killing five people. Two policemen were killed when another car bomb hit a security checkpoint near the town.

In the northern city of Mosul, a suicide bomber set off his explosive belt near police Maj. Ghazai al-Jubouri, the head of a local police force in the area, killing him and two bodyguards and wounding four civilians.

Attacks elsewhere in Baghdad killed 23 people in the mainly Shiite neighborhoods of Hussainiyah, Zafarniyah, Kazimiyah, Shula, al-Shurta and Utaifiya.

Underscoring the political tensions, Iraq's Cabinet also decided Tuesday to postpone upcoming elections in two provinces dominated by the country's minority Sunnis for up to six months.

The two provinces affected, Anbar and Ninevah, have been at the center of the nearly three-month-long protests against Iraq's Shiite-led government. Provincial elections were scheduled to go forward elsewhere on April 20.

The decision followed requests from the political blocs in the provinces, government spokesman Ali al-Moussawi said.

[MiuraDude]

It's awfully hard to believe that the UN is going to lift the Chapter VII sanctions with this kind of stuff going on. And I don't think it matters what the Kuwaitis say or don't say about it. Hope I'm wrong.

[Flatbush Zombies]

It's awfully hard to believe that the UN is going to lift the Chapter VII sanctions with this kind of stuff going on. And I don't think it matters what the Kuwaitis say or don't say about it. Hope I'm wrong.

I agree, it's a mess over there and I have a feeling that there will be a civil war soon. Best solution is to divide Iraq into 3 states. Saddam was evil but this wasn't going on under him. They are worse off now than before we invaded.

With such strong religious convictions, you cannot have a democracy in a country like Iraq. They have been at war with each other since the dawn of time

[dog53]

We cannot expect a Rv until the violence has stopped.

I have always said this and 8 years later I still believe it to be true.

Greed and power once again cheats the Iraqi people of their future

What a shame

[mes]

Just because they are still killing people I don't see what that has to do with keeping them in Chap VII.

[dontlop]

the govt is the ones under chapter 7 .. not some terrorist group ... if the govt was carrying out the bombings then yes i would agree that chapter 7 should not be lifted .

 

the sunnis are backed by the saudis .. iraq is a threat to saudi arabias economy .. if iraq starts  selling 10 million barrels a day . saudi arabia gets a smaller piece of the pie ..

 

 an invasion of saudi arabia to replace its regime would  create to much unstability in the oil market ..

 

 but if iraq gets online  producing 10 million barrels a day .. then the saudis could be backed into a courner .. i think the saudis may covertly be behind the bombings .. of course their will be no records at city hall to prove covert activities ..as we learned that lesson already .

 

but who else would not want iraq to be successful .. .. iran .. maybe . who knows .

are the bombings concentrated in the sunni triangle ?

if they are concentrated in the sunni triangle ..is that  just to stir up problems  and place blame in the wrong place ? who knows what those bass turds are up to

Edited March 19, 2013 by dontlop

[dontlop]

WHO ELSE TENDS TO LOSE BY IRAQ PRODUCING 10 MILLION BARRELS A DAY ?

 

THEY BEN CAUSING TROUBLE IN IRAQ FOR THE LAST 50 YEARS . SADDAM TAKES OVER .. AND WHAT DID HE ACCOMPLISH WITH HIS SUNNIS

[gymrat76541]

Wake up folks, this is & will continueto be normal for Iraq.

If the day ever comes that these bombings stop it; there will be only one religion in the country.

This is why they always needed a IRON HAND ruling their country.

Sunnis will kill Shiite, Shiite kill Sunnis, both kill Kurds.

[Cherysh]

Gaahhhh....Can you imagine being an ordinary citizen in Iraq.....any feeling of normalcy taken again and again and again. What is wrong with these people!!??!!!??? Hate is just beat into their hearts.....proving their pointless point.....How heartbreaking for the human race and to me.

Cherysh

[streakinblue2]

The middle east has been fighting since the beginning of time.

[gymrat76541]

Gaahhhh....Can you imagine being an ordinary citizen in Iraq.....any feeling of normalcy taken again and again and again. What is wrong with these people!!??!!!??? Hate is just beat into their hearts.....proving their pointless point.....How heartbreaking for the human race and to me.

Cherysh

 

BUT this is normal for them. The only reason Saddam stopped the violence is by killing anyone & their families/friends/associates involved in the violence. He killed entire towns to ensure the guilty were caught. That sadly is the ONLY thing that these people seem to understand.

Edited March 19, 2013 by gymrat76541

[staunch]

sorry to say it, but this is normal.  too many entities will lose out when iraq gets their sh#t together and they know this.  that is why everytime iraq comes up on a milestone, this stuff happens.  don't worry about it, do you think that we are the only people that realize their nature? it takes time and baby steps, things are progressing no matter what the "ney sayers" are screaming.

 

 

it will happen

[MiuraDude]

Just because they are still killing people I don't see what that has to do with keeping them in Chap VII.

FYI, I basically asked Adam this question for tomorrow's chat. Hopefully we'll get an answer.

[poorman]

IS THIS OLD NEWS?

[gymrat76541]

As far as a possible RV goes or laws to be passed; this violence has NOTHING to do with anything.

 

It is simply the on-going conflict between different religious ideals.

 

This type of violence will not have any effect on the country or the interaction with the UN.

Moon will appeal for peace but in the Middle East, he can do-do in one hand and appeal for peace in the other & see which fills up faster. LOL

[MiuraDude]

As far as a possible RV goes or laws to be passed; this violence has NOTHING to do with anything.

 

It is simply the on-going conflict between different religious ideals.

 

This type of violence will not have any effect on the country or the interaction with the UN.

Moon will appeal for peace but in the Middle East, he can do-do in one hand and appeal for peace in the other & see which fills up faster. LOL

I hope you're right gymrat!

[Flatbush Zombies]

As far as a possible RV goes or laws to be passed; this violence has NOTHING to do with anything.

 

It is simply the on-going conflict between different religious ideals.

 

This type of violence will not have any effect on the country or the interaction with the UN.

Moon will appeal for peace but in the Middle East, he can do-do in one hand and appeal for peace in the other & see which fills up faster. LOL

How will this not affect Iraq? Sectarian violence and a horrible government are not a recipe for success in a country like Iraq.

[thylocene]

Same old crap.  The country needs to modernize and stabilize.  The other problem that I can see is that there does not seem to be the will to track down and stop these terrorists in Iraq.  If this happened in a Western Country you can bet your bottom dollar that the government would be all over it.

Edited March 19, 2013 by thylocene

[staunch]

How will this not affect Iraq? Sectarian violence and a horrible government are not a recipe for success in a country like Iraq.

Yet they are still making progress!