Nine killed in Iraq bombings, 900 'militants' detained

Four bombings, including three suicide attacks within seven minutes, killed at least nine people, including at least three Iraqi soldiers, in northern Iraq early today, while the government announced it has detained nearly 900 suspected militants in a two-week sweep in Baghdad.

Today’s early morning attacks appeared co-ordinated and aimed at checkpoints manned by members of Iraq’s fledgling army, which has been a constant target of insurgents opposed to the country’s new US-backed government.

The first explosion, caused by a roadside bomb, rocked Hawija, about 40 miles south of Kirkuk, at about 9.30am, killing three civilians, Brig. Gen. Anwar Mohammed Amin said. Heavily-armed US soldiers sealed off the bomb scene, allowing only ambulances to enter and reach the dead and wounded.

Three suicide car bombers then struck in quick succession, attacking in Bagara, Dibis and at the entrance to Hawija. Amin said three soldiers were killed in the Bagara bombing. At least 10 people, including soldiers and civilians, were wounded in the various attacks, he added.

Almost 850 people have died in the violence since Iraq’s new Shiite-led government was announced on April 28, but the carnage has been relatively subdued throughout the country, particularly in the capital, during the past three days.

Iraqi and US officials say a high profile counter-insurgency offensive in Baghdad, dubbed Operation Lightning, may have impacted on the number of attacks in the capital, where multiple suicide car bombings and drive-by shootings have become a sinister part of daily life.

The operation, which began May 22, is the biggest Iraqi-led offensive since Saddam’s ousting two years ago. Before it began, authorities controlled only eight of Baghdad’s 23 entrances. Now all are under government control.

At least 887 arrests have been made during the operation, according to government figures, and 608 mobile and 194 permanent checkpoints have been established around Baghdad. Also, 38 weapon stores were raided.

Sunni Arab Islamic extremists opposed to the new Shiite-led government and former Saddam Hussein loyalists, who lost their positions of power following the former dictator’s ousting, are believed to be major players in the rampant insurgency.

Some Iraqi officials believe the imminent trial of Saddam, who could stand trial within two months, may further lessen the violence.

Saddam, who was captured in December 2003, is facing about 14 cases ranging from gassing thousands of Kurds and suppressing a Shiite uprising to executing religious and political foes during his 23-year reign, according to a list obtained by Iraqi authorities.

The man who once ruled Iraq with an iron fist will likely take the stand behind a bullet-proof glass dock in a custom-made court room, reportedly being built inside Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, the base of Iraq’s government and home to the US Embassy.

Saddam’s lawyers lashed out at Iraqi government plans to start the trial within two months and complained about a lack of access to Saddam and 11 other top members of his toppled regime, who are incarcerated in a US-run facility near Baghdad airport.

According to the list obtained from the special tribunal, among the cases Saddam was responsible for are:

:: The execution of at least 50 Iraqis in 1982 in Dujail, 50 miles north of Baghdad, in retaliation for a failed assassination attempt against Saddam. Five men, including Saddam’s half brother, were indicted on February 28 in the Dujail killings and it probably will be the first case to come to trial;

:: The killing and deporting of 8,000 members of the Kurdish Barzani tribe;

:: The 1988 chemical weapons attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja that killed an estimated 5,000 people;

:: The seven-month occupation of Kuwait that was ended by the 1991 US-led Gulf War;

:: The 1991 suppression of a Shiite uprising in southern Iraq;

:: The execution of prominent religious and political figures. No details were provided on that allegation, but after Saddam grabbed the presidency in 1979, he allegedly killed potential rivals in the now outlawed Baath Party.

Saddam also is expected to be tried over the 1987-88 Anfal campaign in northern Kurdistan, which according to a top human rights official in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Salah Rashid, led to the deaths of about 182,000 Kurds and the destruction of “dozens of Kurdish villages”.

Iraqis are desperate for Saddam’s trial to start and, more importantly, to end, said Laith Kuba, spokesman for Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari. It would, he argued, close the door on an ugly period of Iraq’s history.

“The prime minister has picked up many messages from the public, who are saying things like ’why the delay in putting Saddam Hussein on trial,”’ Kuba said. “He (al-Jaafari) has met with the judges and asked: Is there a delay in the process, and where are we on the process?”

If held within two months, the trial would begin in the middle of another milestone in Iraq’s post-Saddam reconstruction – the final stages of drafting a new constitution. The charter must be completed by August 15 and approved in a referendum two months later.

The impact of both events taking place simultaneously remains unclear, but they guarantee intense international attention and could further increase tensions in this volatile country.

In Jordan, Saddam’s chief lawyer, Khalil al-Duleimi, criticised Iraq’ government for speeding up the trial. “A fair and just trial needs a period of no less than a year to review all the papers, which are said to weigh 36 tons,” he said.

Al-Duleimi also warned the government about publicising the charges his client will face. “If Saddam was charged in the absence of his lawyer, this is a violation of Geneva Conventions and international agreements,” he said.

Al-Duleimi last visited Saddam on April 27 and said the former dictator was unaware of the 14 broad cases. Despite his solitary detention, Saddam remains in “high spirits,” the lawyer added.

But last week, chief trial judge Raid Juhi said Saddam “suffered a collapse in his morale because he understands the extent of the charges against him”.