September Iraq Attacks 'Deadliest Month For Two Years'

Iraq Attacks: September 'Deadliest Month For Two Years' -- BBC

Some 365 people were killed in Iraq during September, making it the country's deadliest month for more than two years, says the government.


The month saw 182 civilians, 88 police and 95 soldiers killed in attacks across Iraq, official figures show.

They were compiled by Iraq's health, interior and defence ministries.

More than 100 died on 9 September in bomb and gun attacks against mostly Shia targets claimed by a Sunni group affiliated with al-Qaeda.

And on Sunday, at least 32 people were killed as car bomb attacks targeted security forces and Shia pilgrims around the country.

The government figures also showed that 683 people - 453 civilians, 110 police and 120 soldiers - were wounded in September.

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More News On September's Iraqi Attacks Being The 'Deadliest Month For Two Years'

Iraq's monthly death toll doubles, bloodiest for two years -- Reuters
September is deadliest month in Iraq in more than 2 years -- CNN
September deadliest month in Iraq in 2 yrs -- The Australian
September Iraq’s deadliest month in over 2 years -- Gulf News/AFP
September deadliest month in Iraq in two years -- Sydney Morning Herald

Threats And Killings Are Now Being Directed Against Iraq's 'Emo Youth'

Threats And Killings Striking Fear Among Young Iraqis, Including Gays -- New York Times

BAGHDAD — A recent spate of killings and intimidation aimed at gay Iraqis and teenagers who dress in brash Western fashions is sending waves of fear through Iraq’s secular circles while casting doubt on the government’s will to protect some of its most vulnerable citizens.
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Many details of what Iraqi newspapers have called the “emo killings” are murky, but the uproar comes at an awkward moment for Iraq. The country has been preparing to showcase itself to the world as host of a high-profile meeting of Arab leaders in late March, the first major diplomatic event here since American forces withdrew in December.

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More News On The Dangers That Iraq's Secular Communities Are Now Facing

Stoned to death for being an emo: NINETY Iraqi students killed for having 'strange hair and tight clothes' -- Daily Mail
Iraq religious militias target 'emo' youths -- The Telegraph
Fear as death squads hunt Iraq's gays and "emos" -- Reuters
At least 14 youths stoned to death in Iraq for wearing Western-style ‘emo’ clothes -- National Post/Reuters
Iraq's 'Emo' Killings Raise Horror and Religious Debate -- Al Bawaba
"Emo" and gay kids targeted, killed in Iraq -- CBS
Emos in Iraq being killed at alarming rate for being thought of as gay -- New York Daily News/AP
Iraqi youth panicked by reports of killings -- Washington Post
Iraqi murders put gay and emo youth on edge -- CNN

America's Former Allies In Iraq Are Now Ostracized Or Targeted For Assassination

Dan Morse/The Washington Post - Muhannad Mundher Mahmoud, who was paid by American Forces to kill terrorists linked to al-Qaeda, now services electrical lines for a generator operator that provides electricity in his Baghdad neighborhood.

Former ‘Sons of Iraq’ Targeted By Insurgents After U.S. Pullout -- Washington Post

BAGHDAD — Muhannad Mahmoud can’t find a place in the new Iraq.

The American military, which hired him and more than 80,000 other Sunni fighters to take on al-Qaeda-affiliated insurgents, just left. But the insurgents certainly have not.

The Iraqi government, increasingly dominated by Shiite powers, is leery about hiring the fighters as security forces. And even if Mahmoud were able to land such a job, some of his fellow Sunnis are so distrustful of the new government that they would label him a traitor.

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My Comment: It is not the first time that America has abandoned allies .... and it will probably not be the last. As for the Iraqi government .... shame on them for not putting the effort into protecting these men who were instrumental in beating down Al Qaeda. But sectarian politics now rules Iraq, and with a Shiite government in place, they have no interest to support and/or protect former Sunni fighters.

U.S. To Iraq: Don't "Blow This Opportunity"

At least two civilians were killed after a motorcycle bomb missed a passing police patrol in Kirkuk [AFP]

U.S. To Iraq: Don't "Blow This Opportunity" -- Yahoo News/Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has warned Iraq not to "blow this opportunity" to become a prosperous, unified nation, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday, saying it must start to act like a democracy and embrace compromise.

Iraq has suffered its worst political crisis in a year with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's move to arrest Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi last month, which has raised fears of renewed sectarian violence following the U.S. troop withdrawal.

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My Comment: Unfortunately, many Iraqis are not listening.

Human Rights Watch: Iraq Is Becoming A Police State

Human Rights Watch: Iraq Getting Worse -- CNN

Baghdad, Iraq (CNN) -- The human rights situation in Iraq is worse now than it was a year ago, the campaign group Human Rights Watch argues in a new report out Sunday, warning that people are being tortured with impunity in secret prisons.

The group says it uncovered a secret prison where detainees were beaten, hung upside down and given electric shocks to sensitive parts of their bodies. Human Rights Watch based its claims on the testimony of detainees themselves.

The Justice Ministry announced in March that it would close the facility, Camp Honor, but Human Rights Watch says it has "credible information that elite forces may still hold and interrogate detainees at Camp Honor."

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More News On "Is Iraq Becoming A Police State?"

Iraq becoming 'police state', says rights group -- AFP
US-based human rights group says Iraq is becoming a 'police state' -- FOX News/AP
Iraq risks slipping into authoritarianism: rights group -- Reuters
Rights group: Iraq 'budding police state' -- UPI
New human rights report details crackdowns in Iraq -- Washington Post
Rights Group Says Iraq Falling Back Into Authoritariansim -- Radio Free Europe

WNU Editor: The Human Right Watch report is here.

Is Iraq Becoming A Dictatorship?

Iraq's Maliki Accused Of Detaining Hundreds Of Political Opponents -- McClatchy News

BAGHDAD — Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki's security services have locked up more than 1,000 members of other political parties over the past several months, detaining many of them in secret locations with no access to legal counsel and using "brutal torture" to extract confessions, his chief political rival has charged.

Ayad Allawi, the secular Shiite Muslim leader of the mainly Sunni Muslim Iraqiya bloc in parliament, who served as prime minister of the first Iraqi government after the Americans toppled Saddam Hussein, has laid out his allegations in written submissions to Iraq's supreme judicial council. Allawi, whose bloc is part of Maliki's coalition government, demanded Wednesday that the prime minister grant the detainees legal counsel and due process.

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More News On Iraq's Political Crisis

Iraqi security forces raid homes of Sunni politicians -- Washington Post
New arrests of Sunni leaders in Iraq political row -- AFP
Iraqi leader complains of harassment -- UPI
Leader: Iraqi spats have sectarian tone -- UPI
Iraqi Sunni politician arrested as row over death squads festers -- The National
Iraq’s Maliki Accused of Detaining, Torturing Hundreds of Political Opponents -- Antiwar.com

After U.S. Military Withdrawal, Iraq Violence Is Up Sharply

Troops, guests and media representatives from throughout the world watch as the last convoy of U.S. service members enters Kuwait from Iraq, Dec. 18, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lynette Hoke

Iraq Violence Up Sharply Since U.S. Troops’ Exit -- Washington Post

BAGHDAD — Violence appears to have increased sharply since U.S. troops left Iraq a month ago, as insurgents have unleashed a wave of furious bombings targeting Baghdad neighborhoods, Shiite pilgrims and police facilities in Sunni areas.

The deadly attacks have roots not only in the troops’ departure but also in a domestic political crisis that erupted in its wake. Shiite and Sunni leaders have squared off in a power struggle, one that analysts say insurgents are trying to turn into a full-scale civil war. How the politicians handle their own mess, and the attacks, will determine Iraq’s ability to hold itself together.

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My Comment: Some leaders in Iraq are taking notice.

Foreign Contractors Not Welcomed In Iraq

This month Iraqi authorities kept scores of contractors penned up at the airport for nearly a week until their visa disputes were resolved. Photo: Reuters

Flexing Muscle, Baghdad Detains U.S. Contractors -- New York Times

BAGHDAD — Iraqi authorities have detained a few hundred foreign contractors in recent weeks, industry officials say, including many Americans who work for the United States Embassy, in one of the first major signs of the Iraqi government’s asserting its sovereignty after the American troop withdrawal last month.

The detentions have occurred largely at the airport in Baghdad and at checkpoints around the capital after the Iraqi authorities raised questions about the contractors’ documents, including visas, weapons permits and authorizations to drive certain routes. Although no formal charges have been filed, the detentions have lasted from a few hours to nearly three weeks.

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More News On Iraq Detaining U.S. Contractors

Iraq detains foreign contractors: report -- Daily Star/AFP
Iraqis begin to assert themselves with a crackdown on foreigners -- Sydney Morning Herald
Iraq Asserts Sovereignity with the U.S. Contractors Who Have Remained -- Atlantic Wire

My Comment: As Iraqi politics gets messier, I suspect that restrictions on foreign contractors will only increase.

Another Bloody Bombing In Baghdad

Bombing Kills 53 Shiite Pilgrims Near Basra, Iraq -- Washington Post

BAGHDAD — A furious explosion ripped through a group of Shiite pilgrims Saturday near the southern Iraqi city of Basra, killing 53 in at least the eighth attack this year against Shiites making their annual treks to holy shrines, security officials said.

The blast was triggered by a suicide bomber disguised in a military uniform, said Lt. Col. Jassim Lefta, a provincial police official. At least three children were among the dead, he said.

Scores of Iraqi military and security forces have tried to protect the millions of pilgrims — many arriving from other countries — who walk to shrines south of the capital to honor a venerated martyr, Imam Hussein. Their 40-day mourning period ended Saturday.

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More News On Saturday/s Bomb Attack In Iraq

Blast Kills Dozens of Shiite Worshipers in Southern Iraq -- New York Times
Bomb Kills at Least 53 Pilgrims in South Iraq -- ABC News/AP
Bombing kills scores of pilgrims in southern Iraq -- L.A. Times
Iraqi suicide bomb kills at least 53 pilgrims in Basra -- The Telegraph
Iraq suicide bomb kills 50 in Basra pilgrims attack -- BBC

Iraq's Political And Sectarian Tensions Continue

Iraq's Political Crisis May Have Broader Mideast Reach -- Voice of America

In the wake of the U.S. military pullout from Iraq, a political crisis threatens to ignite a fresh sectarian conflict. Regional tension between Shi'ite powerhouse Iran and Sunni archrival Saudi Arabia also threatens to worsen the sectarian divide in the Middle East.

In a region hit by multiple crises and growing instability, the latest Iraqi political divide comes as Shi'ite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has attempted to arrest his Sunni vice president and dismiss a Sunni deputy prime minister.

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More News On Iraq's Political Crisis

Iraqi prime minister calls for political stability to ensure security after US withdrawal -- Washington Post/AP
Iraqi Prime Minister Calls For Unity, Stability -- Radio Free Europe
Iraq’s parliament speaker warns against using security forces as political battle heats up -- Washington Post/AP
Sunni leader slams Iraq rights problems -- AFP
Fearing political crisis will spark violence, Iraqi Sunnis again leaving mixed neighborhoods -- Washington Post/AP
Iraq finance minister unhurt in bombing - spokesman -- Reuters
Analysis: Iraqi Kurds maneuver in political minefield -- Reuters
Feeling marginalized, some Iraq Sunnis eye autonomy -- Reuters
A Moderate Official at Risk in a Fracturing Iraq -- New York Times
Iraq official warns of abuse of security forces -- Boston.com/AP
Analysis: Blocs pursue short-term fixes for Iraq political crisis -- Suadad al-Salhy, Reuters
Leslie H. Gelb on How to Save Iraq -- The Daily Beast
Are we witnessing the final disintegration of Iraq? -- Patrick Cockburn, The Independent

Iraq PM Announces Dec. 31 "National Day Of Iraq"

U.S. Army Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commander of U.S. Forces Iraq, and Command Sgt. Maj. Joseph R. Allen case the command's flag during the ceremony marking the end of the U.S. military mission in Iraq on the former Sather Air Base, Baghdad, Dec. 15, 2011. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo

Iraqi Prime Minister Declares 'Iraq Day To Mark Departure Of U.S. Troops -- Radio Free Europe

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has declared December 31 "Iraq Day" to mark the end of a pact allowing U.S. forces to stay in the country.

"I announce today...which witnessed the completion of the withdrawal of U.S. forces, to be a national day," Maliki said in Baghdad on December 31. "We shall call it Iraq Day."

The announcement comes two weeks after U.S. troops completed their withdrawal from Iraq on December 18.

Maliki called for Iraqis to unite, and said the country's days of dictatorship and one-party rule were behind it, even as rival politicians have accused him of centralizing decision-making power.

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More News On The Day To Mark The Departure Of U.S. Troops From Iraq

Iraqi prime minister proclaims ‘ dawn of a new day’ as last U.S. troops depart -- New York Daily News
Iraq’s Nouri al-Maliki marks end of agreement with U.S. via upbeat messages -- Washington Post
Iraqi leader celebrates U.S. withdrawal as new dawn -- USA Today/AP
Maliki marks end of U.S. occupation -- UPI
'Iraq Day' marks troop withdrawal from Iraq -- Digital Journal

My Comment: You would expect tens of thousands of Iraqis on the streets celebrating .... but the fact is the opposite, with only a few hundred showing up. With sectarian differences and divisions now the main focus for most Iraqis, the U.S. withdrawal is the least of their concerns.

One Week After The U.S. Withdrawal, Changes In Iraq Are Accelerating

Official: Iran Stands Ready To Expand Defensive Ties With Iraq -- CNN

(CNN) -- Iran is prepared to expand military and security cooperation with neighboring Iraq, a top Iranian military official said -- a week after U.S. forces pulled out of Iraq.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to establish, boost and expand all types of military, defense and security cooperation with the friendly and brotherly nation of Iraq," Iran's armed forces chief of staff Hassan Firouzabadi said, according to a report Sunday by the semi-official Fars news agency.

The Middle East neighbors have enjoyed closer ties in recent years, especially as Iraq's Shia Muslim majority has solidified its power in the absence of former leader Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Muslim. Iran's theocracy is Shia-led.

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My Comment: Let`s see what is happening in Iraq and the end of the U.S. presence in the country .... hmmmm .... Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki is accruing additional powers and alienating non-Shiite sects. Major attacks are still being conducted by Al Qaeda. Al Sadr`s political party wants new elections. Pundits back home in the U.S. are now stating the obvious. But what is the big news back in the U.S. ..... no major parade for returning troops is planned.

Quick U.S. Departure From Iraq Has Left A Power Vacuum And Chaos

Troops, guests and media representatives from throughout the world watch as the last convoy of U.S. service members enters Kuwait from Iraq, Dec. 18, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lynette Hoke

U.S. Exit From Iraq Leaves A Power Void -- Washington Times

Troops became part of structure.


The Iraqi government lost more than a fighting ally when the last U.S. troops left the country Sunday.

Since the 2003 invasion, U.S. service members had woven themselves into the fabric of Iraq’s power structure - its politicians, soldiers, village elders and tribal sheiks.

Army and Marine Corps officers acted as small-town mayors. They had authority to spend nearly $4 billion over seven years on local construction and humanitarian projects via the Commanders Emergency Response Program.

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My Comment: U.S. intelligence agencies have been universal in predicting the chaos that would follow a quick U.S. departure .... it appears that their worse fears are now being realized by and increase in terrorist attacks and even more political conflict.

The U.S. War In Iraq Is Now Over -- News Roundup

American troops in Iraq before the ceremonies marking the end of their mission on Thursday. Pool photo by Pablo Martinez Monsivais

U.S. War In Iraq Declared Officially Over -- New York Times

BAGHDAD — The United States military officially declared an end to its mission in Iraq on Thursday even as violence continues to plague the country and the Muslim world remains distrustful of American power.

In a fortified concrete courtyard at the airport in Baghdad, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta thanked the more than one million American service members who have served in Iraq for “the remarkable progress” made over the past nine years but acknowledged the severe challenges that face the struggling democracy.

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More News On The U.S. Formally Ending It's War In Iraq

US Marks End of Iraq Military Mission -- Voice of America
US forces mark end of Iraq mission -- Yahoo News/AFP
US marks end to nearly nine years in Iraq -- Financial Times/Reuters
U.S. military formally ends mission in Iraq -- L.A. Times
US marks the end of Iraq military campaign in formal ceremony -- The Telegraph
Reporters Notebook: Panetta Formally Ends U.S. Military Mission in Iraq -- FOX News
U.S. Declares End of Mission in Iraq -- ABC News
Iraq war draws to a quiet close -- Washington Post
'A new chapter': US officially ends Iraq war -- MSNBC
U.S. officially ends military mission in Iraq -- Xinhuanet
In Iraq, US formally draws a close to an unpopular war -- Christian Science Monitor
U.S. Military Formally Ends Iraq Mission -- Radio Free Europe

U.S. Allies In Iraq Now Feel Deserted

Sheik Ahmed Abu Risha, who leads the Sunni Awakening, at his compound in Ramadi. A portrait depicts his brother Abdul, who was assassinated in 2007. Andrea Bruce for The New York Times

U.S. Leaving Iraqi Comrades-in-Arms In Limbo -- New York Times

RAMADI, Iraq — Meeting various neighbors and supplicants on a recent evening, America’s staunchest ally in Iraq, Sheik Ahmed Abu Risha, sat in a tent sipping tea from an implausibly tiny glass cup. He greeted each new visitor with a hearty outburst of “dear one” and a kiss on the cheek.

At one point a young man walked in carrying an M-16 rifle, leaned over and kissed the sheik on the cheek, too, in a clear sign of loyalty from a member of a tribal militia.

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My Comment: If they keep their weapons .... these Sunni-American allies will be safe .... for now. But later .... who knows.

To The Victor Goes The Spoils

Turf Battle Forms Over Hussein's Palaces -- Wall Street Journal

CAMP VICTORY, Iraq—A quarrel is brewing among Iraqi officials over who gets to decide what to do with the sprawling complex of grandiose former palaces of Saddam Hussein that has served for years as Camp Victory, the headquarters of the U.S. military in Iraq.

The compound, encircled by 27 miles of blast walls, is expected to be handed over to the Iraqi government on Friday, as the U.S. prepares to pull its last troops from the country by the end of the month, after nearly nine years.

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My Comment: I would not be surprised to see a good part of it leveled in the next few years. It occupies prime real estate .... and I am sure the developers are now positioning themselves to get a chuck of that action.

Plot To Overthrow The Iraq Government Is A Fake

Coup Tip A Fake, Official Says -- Newsweek/Daily Beast

In an exclusive interview a senior Iraqi official tells The Daily Beast the government did not receive a tip that was cited in The New York Times as a reason for mass arrests.

The arrests started last month and kept growing. First it was 200, then 400, and now more than 600 Iraqis alleged to be members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party have been rounded up and accused of plotting to overthrow the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. One reason given for the crackdown was odd, even by Iraqi standards. A “senior official in the Iraqi government” told The New York Times last week that they had received a tipoff from an unlikely source: intelligence documents found in Tripoli after the fall of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi indicated that the Saharan madman was helping Baathists and former military officers in Iraq to topple the government, the newspaper reported. Mahmoud Jibril, the former Libyan acting prime minister, allegedly passed on the intelligence tip to members of the Iraqi government while on a visit to Baghdad early last month.

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Previous Post: Iraq Government Targets Sunnis In Latest Crackdown

My Comment: The plot may have been a fake, but it served it's purpose.

Iraq's Military Forces Not Ready Until 2020

Iraqi forces will not be ready to protect its borders without assistance from international partners until at least 2020, a military official says. (AFP)

Iraq General Says ‘Forces Not Ready Until 2020’ -- Al Arabiya News

Iraq will not be fully able to defend its borders and airspace until at least 2020, a watchdog quoted Iraq’s top general as saying in a report on Sunday, months before U.S. troops are to leave.

The Iraqi military’s chief of staff, Lieutenant General Babaker Zebari, “estimated that it will take several more years before Iraq can provide for its external defense without assistance from international partners,” said the report from the U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR).

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More News On Iraq Military Forces Not Ready Until 2020

Iraq can't defend itself fully before 2020 - general -- Reuters
Iraq general says forces not ready 'until 2020' -- AFP
Iraq will need U.S. oversight for a decade, watchdog reports -- News.Gnom.es
Iraqi Military Chief: Military Won’t Be ‘Fully Ready’ for Defense Until 2020 to 2024 -- Antiwar.com
Iraq not capable of defending itself until 2020, report -- Xnhuanet

My Comment: Iraq's defence chief has been saying this for the past year .... but no one is listening.

US Military Post Offices In Iraq To Close Novemebr 17

Mail Terminal Services in Newark, NJ, a USPS-contracted company that prepares and ships mail to US war zones. Photo from Mssparky

Military Post Offices in Iraq to Close Nov. 17 -- US Department of Defense

WASHINGTON, Oct. 26, 2011 – Because U.S. forces are coming home from Iraq by the end of the year, the U.S. Postal Service will stop accepting mail addressed to military post offices in Iraq starting Nov. 17, Defense Department officials said today.

Military post offices in Iraq also will stop processing mail Nov. 17, and service members there should begin now to advise those who send them mail about the Nov. 17 deadline.

Mail still in the postal system through Nov. 17 will be processed and delivered to service members in Iraq, officials said.

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My Comment: You know that the US military is leaving Iraq when you read stories like this one.

Is Iraq's Anbar Province A U.S. Success Story?

In Iraq’s Anbar Province, Unfinished Business? -- Washington Post

AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq — The dust storm swallowed the horizon and then the soldiers, who leaned into the windy blur to load rucksacks onto vehicles pointed homeward. At 3:30 a.m. the next day, their Army battalion would roll out under the cover of darkness, concluding their mission to advise and train Iraqi security forces in Anbar province.

The swath of western Iraq the battalion was leaving behind has seen the bloodiest points of the war, but also some of the most promising. Since the war began, 1,332 U.S. troops have died in Anbar, nearly one in three of all U.S. fatalities. But not one has been killed in action in the province in more than two years.

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My Comment: When it comes to Iraq .... I am super-duper skeptical .... especially when I read news reports like this one. But if the Iraq Sunnis in Anbar are smart, they should cement and position themselves to have the same autonomy that the Kurds in northern Iraq have been able to establish for themselves. But .... Iraq being Iraq .... I have doubts that this is going to happen.