NYT: Violence Surges Through Central and Northern Iraq

[leftchick]

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/20/international/middleeast/20cnd-iraq.html

~snip~

At dawn, insurgents armed with Kalashnikov rifles and rocket-propelled grenades tried storming a police station in the northwestern Baghdad neighborhood of Amariya, where American and Iraqi soldiers had engaged in a bloody mosque shootout on Friday. The gun battle at the station left three Iraqi policemen dead and two others injured, Col. Adnan Abdul-Rahman, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said.

Hours later, a car bomb exploded in downtown Baghdad, at the eastern end of the bridge over the Tigris River leading to the fortified compound housing the American embassy and interim Iraqi government headquarters. The bomb was aimed at a convoy of vehicles from a Western security contractor, and at least one Iraqi was killed and another injured, witnesses said.

Four employees of the public works ministry were gunned down in a drive-by ambush, and three Iraqi National Guardsmen died in explosions in western Baghdad during gun battles with insurgents, Iraqi officials said.

~snip~

Fighting raged in the rubble of Falluja, a city largely decimated by American troops during a week-long offensive. Two Marines were killed and four wounded in a guerilla ambush, military officials said. The offensive smashed a safe haven for the insurgents, but guerillas still roam the devastated streets, sniping at American troops and scaring away military engineers brought in to try to reconstruct the city.



Insurgents detonated several bombs around Baghdad on Saturday.

[acmavm]

1. Better let the bush* administration and the idiots in the Pentagon know

because they think things are going just FINE and we've 'broken the back' of the insurgency.

[maddezmom]

2. AP's headline: Violence Breaks Out All Over Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Baghdad exploded in violence Saturday, as insurgents attacked a U.S. patrol and a police station, assassinated four government employees and detonated several bombs. One American soldier was killed and nine were wounded during clashes that also left three Iraqi troops and a police officer dead.


Some of the heaviest violence came in Azamiyah, a largely Sunni Arab district of Baghdad where a day earlier U.S. troops raided the capital's main Sunni mosque. Shops were in flames, and a U.S. Humvee burned, with the body of what appeared to be its driver inside.


U.S. forces and insurgents also battled in the Sunni Triangle city of Ramadi, where clashes have been seen almost daily. Nine Iraqis were killed and five wounded in Saturday's fighting, hospital officials said.


In northern Iraq (news - web sites), U.S. and Iraqi forces uncovered four decapitated bodies as they continued a campaign to crush militants who rose up last week. American and Iraqi forces detained 30 suspected guerrillas overnight in Mosul, the U.S. military said Saturday.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=736&e=2&u=/ap/20041120/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

[maddezmom]

3. BBC: Fresh violence hits Iraq capital

Iraqi and US troops have been involved in renewed clashes with insurgents in several areas of the capital, Baghdad.
At least three policemen died when the rebels fired rocket-propelled grenades at their station in the Adhamiya area.

An adviser to an Iraqi minister was killed in a separate attack, along with three other people.

A US soldier also died, and nine others were injured, when their unit came under a co-ordinated attack, the US military said in a statement.

Many observers believe the attack on the police station was in retaliation for Friday's raid by Iraqi security forces, backed by American troops, on the Abu Hanifa mosque in the same district.

more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4028307.stm

[leftchick]

4. it isn't just Baghdad!

This is a particularly violent day all over Iraq. AP underplays the truth yet again in their headline.

[TomClash]

7. and AP is one of the better ones . . . n/t

[saigon68]

9. "BRING EM ON" squeaked the TALIBORN AGAIN CHIMPANZEE

[saigon68]

5. "We have broken the back of the insurgency",

"We have broken the back of the insurgency", disrupting rebel operations across the country, a
senior U.S. commander Lt. Gen. John Sattler said on Thursday. Nov 18,2004

On Edit: YOU FUCKING LIAR-- YOUR TROOPS ARE BEING ZAPPED EVERY DAY
YOU WITLESS BOOTLICK CHENEY BUTT BOY.

[leftchick]

10. I count three today saigon....

in this story. Do you have an update? :(

[jjanpundt]

17. Didn't the military issue the same kind of stories/comments

during Vietnam? They'd say everything was going fine and then later we'd hear that 100s of soldiers had died capturing a village. Military spokespeople should just come out and say "everything I tell you is a lie".

[TomClash]

6. "Freedom is on the march" n/t

[VegasWolf]

8. Damn shame for Iraq that they have so much Oil. * would never

have gone there in the 1st place.

[ScrewyRabbit]

11. My favorite propaganda line from the piece:

"The offensive smashed a safe haven for the insurgents, but guerillas still roam the devastated streets, sniping at American troops..."

Don't try to square the logic of that sentence, your head will explode.

[tmooses]

12. Fallujah will only be "safe" from insurgents if it is permanently occupied

by US forces. that's the only logic I see from that statement. The guerillas roam free in Fallujah because the residents support them-it's a lesson we should have learned 30 years ago. We cannot station a troop on every street corner and put our soldiers in a shooting gallery.

[jjanpundt]

15. You'd think an editor would have caught something that

ridiculous. Or at least questioned how insurgents morphed into guerilla fighters. :crazy:

[VolcanoJen]

13. Lunaville: 100 Soldiers Killed in Iraq (so far) in November

Another tragic milestone.

FREEDOM IS ON THE MARCH

http://icasualties.org/oif/

[Nicholas_J]

14. Of course

As the American Death toll goes up,and the insurgent attacks increase, and support for the insurgency grows, The Bush Administration will present this as a stunning victory, that we have broken the back of the insurgency, and that all of the increasing number of attacks is a sign that the insurgents are getting worried and engaged in a last ditch attempt to push out the victorious American troops who are providing freedom to Iraqis.

[leftchick]

16. military vehicle ablaze....

US soldiers inspect the site where an US Humvee was destroyed by a road side explosive device in Baghdad Saturday Nov. 20, 2004. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

[maddezmom]

18. Fallujah....not sure I believe this story of "white flags:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041120/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq&cid=540&ncid=1480

In Fallujah, where U.S. Marines and soldiers are still battling pockets of resistance, insurgents waved a white flag of surrender before opening fire on U.S. troops and causing casualties, Marine spokesman 1st Lt. Lyle Gilbert said Saturday without elaborating.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

sounds fishy to me....wonder where this story will lead?

[maddezmom]

19. Baghdad, Mosul, Fallujah, Baquba, Ramadi, Kirkuk, Tamim, Sammarra

all mentioned in this article:

Violent Insurgent Attacks Sweep Baghdad
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041120/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq&cid=540&ncid=1480

[leftchick]

20. they really should re-do that headline....

to reflect actual events in IRAQ! :grr:

[maddezmom]

21. wonder when or if 1st Lt. Lyle Gilbert will elaborate on his statements??

[maddezmom]

22. how many casualties??

can not find anything on this???

[maddezmom]

23. CNN reporting 1 "insurgent" held up white flag before shooting

US military will not release any casualty figures over this incident.

[jmcgowanjm]

25. In case of doubt, do not believe invader/occupier

until proven otherwise.

where American and Iraqi soldiers had engaged in a bloody mosque-THIS IS A LIE.

Eyewitness to US Forces Raiding a Mosque
by Dahr Jamail

She said someone asked the soldiers if they would be
made hostages. A soldier used foul language and
asked everyone to shut up, she said. Suddenly, she
laughed amid her tears. "The Americans have learnt how to
say shut up in Arabic, 'Inchev.'"
Soldiers denied Iraqi Red Crescent ambulances and
medical teams access to the mosque. As doctors
negotiated with U.S. soldiers outside, more gunfire was
heard from inside.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1007790#

[maddezmom]

29. the response here:

Marines from the 1st Marine Division shot and killed an insurgent Sunday who opened fire after pretending to be dead. The U.S. military is investigating a Nov. 13 incident in which an NBC videotape showed a Marine shooting a wounded man lying in a Fallujah mosque. Marines could be heard yelling that the man was pretending to be dead

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041122/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq&cid=540&ncid=1480

So did he open fire? how many US casualties? this story still stinks to me, JMO.

[maddezmom]

24. Insurgent attacks continue across Iraq, despite fall of Fallujah

BAGHDAD (AP) - Insurgents ambushed a U.S. patrol, killing a soldier, gunned down four government employees and clashed with troops in neighbourhoods across Baghdad on Saturday. Nine Iraqis died in fighting west of the capital - another sign the insurgency remains potent, despite the fall of its stronghold Fallujah.



In Fallujah, where U.S. marines and soldiers are still battling pockets of resistance, insurgents waved a white flag of surrender before opening fire on troops and causing casualties, marine spokesman 1st Lieut. Lyle Gilbert said Saturday without elaborating.


U.S. troops in the northern city Mosul found the bodies of nine Iraqi soldiers Saturday, all shot in the back of the head, the U.S. military said. The military first reported seven of the victims had been beheaded but a second statement issued late Saturday said those "initial reports" were false.


Four other decapitated bodies were found earlier in the week in Mosul and have not yet been identified, the military said Saturday.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=2149&ncid=2149&e=4&u=/cpress/20041120/ca_pr_on_wo/iraq

Gotta live in Canada to get a truthful headline from AP? :shrug:

[jmcgowanjm]

26. Baghdad tonight 112004

http://www.iraq-war.ru/article_image.php?id=31211

The Battle for Baghdad may be beginning.

Latest IRR 112004:

Here is the latest report from Falluja II:

After many waves of attack and counter attack, the
Iraqi Resistance Fighters have regained 55-60% of
Falluja, mainly the southern part of the
city...
For today, US forces have slowed the thrust of their
attacks against the defences of the Resistance...The
Iraqi Resistance are making every shot count,
countering previous thrusts with mortar and C5K
fire...
Two major engagements have taken place in Sinaiya
District and Askari District, both of which resulted in
the withdrawal of US forces.
Report indicates much of the US heavy weapons have not
been moved today to engage in fighting, while 250
heavy weapons have been pulled away from Falluja,
possibly towards Mosel.
The Resistance sees this as a prommising sign that the
assult on Fallujah has weakened the resolve of the US
forces and that with further time their entire assult may
collapse.

http://www.islammemo.cc/news/one_news.asp?IDNews=50053

Break in case of doubt:
1. Gather all info.
2. Cross compare data.
3. Form your conclusions.

[jmcgowanjm]

27. Something has gone very wrong

US does mosque murder charade to divert attention (this
was filmed by imbedded reporter, cleared by pentagon
sensors, released first to US TV) ...This is a clear indication
that something has gone very wrong (i.e. Abu Ghraib
photos timed perfectly with loss at Falluja I, Saving
Jessica Lynch timed perfectly with airport battle in 2003).

Now, this white flag story.

- Reports comming out from Jazzera, Islammemo,
and Resistance reports shows the US is lying (surprise)
and that fighting is still raging in Falluja after nearly 14 days
from the initial attack.

Cross and compare all the above (plus more) and you have
one simple conclusion:

Falluja II is bigger military and political loss than Falluja I...
City cannot be taken unless nuked (chem weapons
already tried)...IR far stronger and motivated than
Falluja I...

[leesa]

28. Who would have thought there would be violence??!

We must have the most unintelligent military in the world.

[struggle4progress]

30. The problem, I think, is their commander-in-chief. He's busy ...

... trying to live down his limp performance in TANG by proving he's in no hurry to pull out now.