Blast near poll commission in Iraq's Basra

[leftchick]

http://www.arabtimesonline.com/arabtimes/breakingnews/view.asp?msgID=7771

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - A bomb exploded near the election commission headquarters and main police building in Iraq's southern city of Basra on Tuesday, witnesses said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The explosion followed a suicide bombing attack on a former police official in Basra, Iraq's second city. Only the bomber was killed in that attack, witnesses said.

Insurgents have stepped up attacks on Iraqi security forces, politicians and election officials in a bid to undermine polls scheduled for Jan. 30.

... and this From Monday night, I never saw on yahoo...

http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?ID=35811

At least one dead, seven wounded in car bombs in southern Iraq

BASRA, Iraq, Jan 10 (AFP) - At least one suicide bomber was killed and seven people were wounded in two separate car bombings in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on Monday, hospital sources said.

One of the bombs targeted an interior ministry building in the centre of Basra, leaving four wounded, said Rafed Ali, head of the emergency department at the city's main hospital.

An AFP photographer said the bomber's severed head was found at the scene.

Another car bomb blew up around the same time near the Hamdan Abul Khassib police post in eastern Basra, leaving three people wounded, said Ali, without specifying if they were civilians or police.


... It looks like "peaceful" Basra may not be ready for elections either. :eyes:

[TomClash]

1. You didn't see it on Yahoo

because they can't keep up with all the bombings and AP/AFP/Reuters don't have stringers in Basra.

[leftchick]

2. what is a stringer?

This report and most others I see from Basra are from AFP.

[TomClash]

3. A stringer

a part-time or freelance correspondent for the news media. If there is a story in Chad, for instance, they'll sometimes use an educated local or Euro ex-pat to cover it. They don't have correspondents on the ground everywhere.

Iraqis are doing a lot of the work in Iraq.

[leftchick]

4. This is how I find under reported stories....

Iraqi security officers survey the scene of a car bomb explosion, January 12, 2005, which struck a residential area in the southern Iraq (news - web sites) city of Basra on Tuesday night. The latest attack came one day after a pair of car bombs in the city killed one person and wounded seven others. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

I come across a photo like this from this morning and then google for the matching story. There are many many photos on yahoo from Iraq that never have a story. Most often when a camera person catches a military or contractor vehicle that has been attacked.

I have also noticed many Arab sounding names in the photo credits I am assuming are mostly Iraqi.

Thanks for the information! :)

[TomClash]

5. You're welcome :-)

I think US casualties are underreported as well. I think total US casualties are probably close to double what is being reported.