.Gunmen in police uniforms kill U.S. soldier, Iraqi in Mosul
Reporting from Baghdad -- A U.S. soldier and an Iraqi interpreter were killed today and three American troops were injured when gunmen, who officials said wore Iraqi police uniforms, fired on them in the northern city of Mosul.
It was the third time since November that men in Iraqi security force uniforms have attacked American forces in Nineveh province.
A brief U.S. military statement gave few details of the incident, which it said occurred about 2 p.m., during a meeting at an Iraqi police station. It said four Americans were injured and one later died. A second Iraqi interpreter also was injured.
According to Iraqi police, gunmen wearing police uniforms opened fire on the group at a bridge checkpoint in Mosul, the capital of Nineveh. A police official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not an authorized spokesman, said the gunmen were manning the checkpoint and fled after the shooting. The official also reported that two Americans were killed.
Nineveh is considered the last stronghold of the militant group Al Qaeda in Iraq and also a battleground for Sunni Arab and Kurdish elements fighting for influence in the region. Unlike most of Iraq, its level of violence has not declined dramatically in recent months. Earlier this month, four U.S. troops were killed in an attack in Nineveh, where Iraqi and U.S. forces on Friday launched a military offensive.
Iraqi Brig. Gen. Said Ahmed Juboori said today the operation was being carried out by army and national police elements, in addition to American forces. He said it would lead to mass arrests.
Asked how it would be different from other offensives in the last two years, which have failed to quell Nineveh's violence, Juboori said that this time security forces had narrowed their focus to specific names of suspected militants. Past operations were faulted for being announced in advance, giving insurgents time to go into hiding, or for involving wide sweeps that rounded up scores of people who later were released for lack of evidence.
In November, there were two incidents in which Iraqi security forces opened fire on U.S. troops. In one instance, an Iraqi soldier killed two Americans and wounded six before being shot to death by U.S. troops. In the second attack, an Iraqi soldier fired on Americans as they handed out aid to locals west of Mosul, killing two.
Violence nationwide is at its lowest level since August 2003, according to U.S. officials, and American troop deaths are their lowest since the Iraq war began in March 2003. But northern Iraq, particularly Nineveh and Diyala provinces, remain trouble spots.
On Monday, three U.S. soldiers and their Iraqi interpreter were killed in Diyala. At least 4,251 American forces have died in Iraq since the war began, according to the independent website icasualties.org.
Under a security agreement that took effect Jan. 1, most American troops must leave bases in urban areas by the end of June, leaving Iraqis to handle the bulk of security.
LAT
What an idiot President Obama will be if he pulls out before the job is done in Iraq. History will look back poorly on such a bad decision. Not to mention that Iraq will become a staging point for attacks on our efforts in Afghanistan.
It was the third time since November that men in Iraqi security force uniforms have attacked American forces in Nineveh province.
A brief U.S. military statement gave few details of the incident, which it said occurred about 2 p.m., during a meeting at an Iraqi police station. It said four Americans were injured and one later died. A second Iraqi interpreter also was injured.
According to Iraqi police, gunmen wearing police uniforms opened fire on the group at a bridge checkpoint in Mosul, the capital of Nineveh. A police official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not an authorized spokesman, said the gunmen were manning the checkpoint and fled after the shooting. The official also reported that two Americans were killed.
Nineveh is considered the last stronghold of the militant group Al Qaeda in Iraq and also a battleground for Sunni Arab and Kurdish elements fighting for influence in the region. Unlike most of Iraq, its level of violence has not declined dramatically in recent months. Earlier this month, four U.S. troops were killed in an attack in Nineveh, where Iraqi and U.S. forces on Friday launched a military offensive.
Iraqi Brig. Gen. Said Ahmed Juboori said today the operation was being carried out by army and national police elements, in addition to American forces. He said it would lead to mass arrests.
Asked how it would be different from other offensives in the last two years, which have failed to quell Nineveh's violence, Juboori said that this time security forces had narrowed their focus to specific names of suspected militants. Past operations were faulted for being announced in advance, giving insurgents time to go into hiding, or for involving wide sweeps that rounded up scores of people who later were released for lack of evidence.
In November, there were two incidents in which Iraqi security forces opened fire on U.S. troops. In one instance, an Iraqi soldier killed two Americans and wounded six before being shot to death by U.S. troops. In the second attack, an Iraqi soldier fired on Americans as they handed out aid to locals west of Mosul, killing two.
Violence nationwide is at its lowest level since August 2003, according to U.S. officials, and American troop deaths are their lowest since the Iraq war began in March 2003. But northern Iraq, particularly Nineveh and Diyala provinces, remain trouble spots.
On Monday, three U.S. soldiers and their Iraqi interpreter were killed in Diyala. At least 4,251 American forces have died in Iraq since the war began, according to the independent website icasualties.org.
Under a security agreement that took effect Jan. 1, most American troops must leave bases in urban areas by the end of June, leaving Iraqis to handle the bulk of security.
LAT
What an idiot President Obama will be if he pulls out before the job is done in Iraq. History will look back poorly on such a bad decision. Not to mention that Iraq will become a staging point for attacks on our efforts in Afghanistan.
posted by madtom at 7:05 PM
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