Iraq endures bloody morning, Overnight fighting, U.S. airstrikes in Sadr City kill eight, wound 28

[maddezmom]

Source: CNN


BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Firefights and U.S. airstrikes killed at least eight people in Baghdad's violence-wracked Sadr City overnight, while insurgent attacks killed four in Baghdad, Tikrit and Diyala province Saturday morning, Iraqi officials said.


Forty-six people were injured in the violence across Iraq -- 28 of them in the sprawling Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City, where U.S. and Iraqi forces have been battling Shiite militiamen for a month.

South of Baghdad, Iraqi firefighters brought a pipeline blaze, ignited by an accidental explosion on Friday evening, under control early Saturday, officials said.

An Iraqi Interior Ministry official said the eight dead in Sadr City included two children.



Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/04/26/iraq.main/index.html?section=cnn_latest

[katmondoo]

1. Disnyland should go over well for these people

[maddezmom]

2. newest headline: US military reports relative lull in Baghdad's Sadr City

US military reports relative lull in Baghdad's Sadr City posted 9:28 am Sat April 26, 2008 - BAGHDAD tags: us • military • reports • relative The U.S. military reported a relative lull in fighting Saturday, a day after radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said his threat of an "open war" applied only to American-led foreign troops. Still, at least 12 Iraq (web|news) is were wounded Saturday in sporadic clashes in the sprawling slum district of Sadr City, a stronghold of al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia, officials said. No U.S. or Iraqi troop casualties were reported.


The injured in Sadr City included a school boy wounded by a stray bullet that pierced his school bag, health officials said. Elsewhere in Baghdad, eight people - including five policemen - were injured in separate attacks, officials said.

The lull in fighting came after Al-Sadr called Friday for an end to Iraqi bloodshed and said his threat of an "open war" applied only to U.S.-led foreign troops, stepping back from a full-blown confrontation with the government over a crackdown against his followers.

Al-Sadr's appeal won support of some residents of Sadr City who also have been facing shortages of food and supplies.

more;http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0408/514730.html

[ohio2007]

4. two different sources,two different spins ...out of how many possible spins ?

US military reports relative lull in Baghdad's Sadr City
AP

snip
"In general, people in Sadr City are very happy about this decision. I think Mahdi Army elements are also happy about it, but till now the situation has not changed yet in Sadr City," he added.

Other residents were worried about factions within the Mahdi Army who may not be willing to observe the cease-fire. U.S. authorities claim that "special forces" trained by Iran are operating within the ranks of the Mahdi Army.



snip

There were no major engagements that required the intervention of U.S. helicopter gunships, Stover said.

"We had no air strikes last night. There were no major engagements last night. it was fairly quiet," he said.


more;http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0408/514730.html


U.S. military denies involvement in Sadr City killings

CNN
snip
Saturday morning saw a wave of violence across multiple locations in Iraq.



snip

...oil fire broke out about 7:40 p.m. on a pipeline southwest of Iskandariya in Babil province, a U.S. military statement said.


Maintenance workers accidentally triggered the blast, the commander of the Karbala Operations Center said.

He said the fire was contained by 1:30 a.m. and was extinguished a short time later.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/04/26/iraq.main/index.html?section=cnn_latest

It's up to the Iraqi's to decide and take control of their fate. We won't be a crutch for 100 years as some stories have been reporting ....
while other stories go swept under the rug ;

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23599516-7583,00.html

[maddezmom]

3. Bombing in Baghdad targets U.S.-allied security force

Bombing in Baghdad targets U.S.-allied security force


By Tina Susman, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
6:44 AM PDT, April 26, 2008
BAGHDAD -- A bomb targeting members of a volunteer security force in a former Sunni Muslim insurgent stronghold of Baghdad killed two guards and injured eight others today, police said.

One of the targets was Abu Abed, who heads a 600-man paramilitary force in Amiriya that has worked alongside U.S. troops to enforce law in the neighborhood. In December, the Los Angeles Times profiled Abed, a suspected former insurgent who is now one of about 90,000 Iraqis in the U.S.-allied Sawha movement.


The Sawha foot soldiers, commonly known as Sons of Iraq, are frequent targets of assassination attempts. The U.S. military credits the movement with helping reduce violence in former insurgent strongholds.

A man identifying himself as Abu Abed's security chief, who did not want his name published, said the blast occurred as Abu Abed and his guards were preparing to enter a building for a meeting. The bomb exploded near the front gate. He said Abu Abed was not badly injured.

more:http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iraq27apr27,1,3324264.story?track=rss
Earlier today, hospital officials in Sadr City, the stronghold of Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada Sadr, said overnight clashes had killed eight people and injured 29. There was no independent confirmation of the casualty figures.

Battles between Shiite militiamen and Iraqi and U.S. forces have flared in Sadr City since late last month when the Iraqi government mounted an offensive against militia fighters. The violence has dropped considerably in the past couple of weeks, but skirmishes continue.

[e-mail]

Times staff writer Raheem Salman and special correspondents in Baghdad contributed to this report.


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[ohio2007]

5. " Sons of Iraq, are frequent targets of assassination attempts "

imo, all sons of Iraq need to stand up and take back their country from all forces, not just those IED planters that are trying to kill them because they are working with the current Iraqi govt.


A lot depends on what those released from the prisons in the comming weeks are being told to do at the lowest level, their family chieftains.

[junior college]

6. Sadr and his militia need to take back Iraq from the US

occupiers. Unfortunately that will mean a lot of bloodshed but the alternative is to have US forces Iraq country for decades to come.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

7. When I heard on the radio yesterday that he had 'declared war' ...

I had the same thought.

[ohio2007]

8. Iraq's Sunni VP wants to return to government

BAGHDAD - Iraq's Sunni Arab vice president on Saturday called the return of his boycotting political bloc to the Shiite-led Cabinet a priority, saying the government needs to reconcile quickly to "save Iraq."

Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi's comments were the latest to signal readiness by the main Sunni bloc, the National Accordance Front, to rejoin the government after an absence of nearly nine months.
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki also said Friday that he expected to present a new Cabinet list "within a few days" —

snip

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/iraq;_ylt=AlK12COJ4bG2n5nKTCcpmQxX6GMA

al Sadrs get tough Tet offensive talk in Basra seemed to have backfired.