[NYTr] 8 More US Soldiers Die in Iraq

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

AP - Sep 5, 2007
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ?SITE=PASUN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

8 More U.S. Soldiers Die in Iraq

By BASSEM MROUE
Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD (AP) -- A car bomb killed at least 13 people Wednesday in a
Shiite part of Baghdad, and the U.S. command announced the deaths of
eight more American soldiers - some victims of a weapon the American
command believes comes from Iran.

At least 44 Iraqis were killed or found dead nationwide Wednesday,
according to police reports. The toll marked an uptick in the daily
carnage as President Bush prepares for a showdown in Congress over the
future of the U.S. mission.

The deadliest attack occurred when a roadside bomb exploded along a
busy highway during the morning rush hour in the eastern Baghdad
district of Baladiyat. A medic at a nearby hospital said 13 people
died, but a police officer put the figure at 15.

Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not supposed to
release the information.

"We heard a big explosion and I saw many people get injured - I was one
of them," a man who identified himself only as Amjed told Associated
Press Television News from his hospital bed. His right shoulder was
bandaged and left arm in a sling.

"We're poor people, we're already suffering enough from the hardships
of life - and now this," he said. "I'm fed up with those who plant
bombs and target people."

Three of the American soldiers were killed and two were wounded after
their Humvee was hit Tuesday with an explosively formed penetrator, a
type of bomb that the U.S. alleges Iran has been supplying to Shiite
militias. Iran denies the accusation.

Two other U.S. soldiers were killed and another wounded in an eastern
section of Baghdad on Wednesday during combat operations, the military
said. Two other Americans were mortally wounded Wednesday in a blast in
Salahuddin province north of the capital.

Another soldier was killed and two were wounded during fighting Tuesday
in western Baghdad, the U.S. command said.

The bloodshed in mostly Shiite eastern Baghdad occurred a week after
the country's most powerful Shiite militia leader, cleric Muqtada
al-Sadr, ordered his fighters to cease attacks for up to six months so
he could restructure his Mahdi Army.

But U.S. commanders say renegade elements within the Mahdi Army have
disregarded al-Sadr's order and are continuing attacks on U.S. and
Iraqi forces. The U.S. believes those groups are backed by the
Iranians, a charge that the Islamic Republic denies.

Early Wednesday, U.S. forces captured an Iraqi believed to be working
with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps's elite Quds Force to
supply Shiite militias with Iranian-made weapons, said Maj. Winfield
Danielson III.

The suspect is also believed to have helped transport Iraqis to Iran
for "terrorist training," Danielson said in an e-mail. The military
said it is believed that he is "closely linked to individuals at the
highest levels" of the Quds Force.

The violence occurred five days before U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker and
Gen. David Petraeus report to Congress about progress since the United
States sent nearly 30,000 more troops to Iraq.

Democrats are considering ways to force a drawdown of troops if Bush
decides to keep forces in Iraq through spring as expected. A showdown
between congressional Democrats and the White House seems all but
assured.

With political tensions rising, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki met
behind closed doors in the holy city of Najaf with Iraq's top Shiite
cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, to brief him on efforts to
revive his flagging government, crippled by walkouts by Sunni Cabinet
ministers and Shiite followers of al-Sadr.

Shiite politicians such as al-Maliki never make major decisions without
consulting al-Sistani, whose endorsement in the January 2005 election
elevated Shiite political parties to power.

There was no comment from the reclusive al-Sistani or his associates.
But al-Maliki told reporters he discussed prospects of bringing Sunnis
back into the government or putting together an entirely new
administration of nonpartisan technocrats - though emphasized it was
currently only an "idea" that was being considered among others.

"We are still trying to persuade the (Sunni Arab) brothers to return to
their ministries but it seems that they are not likely to do so," he
told reporters. "This, naturally, means the ministries cannot be left
vacant."

Elsewhere, officials in Sulaimaniyah announced that they had
indefinitely postponed the start of classes for primary and secondary
schools in an effort to prevent the further spread of cholera in the
northern province.

Since the disease broke out in mid-August, nine people have died and
some 70 others have been confirmed with cholera. Another 4,000 are
suffering from symptoms like severe diarrhea and vomiting.

Cholera is a gastrointestinal disease that is typically spread by
drinking contaminated water and can cause severe diarrhea. In extreme
cases, that can lead to fatal dehydration. In this case, U.S. military
medical officials have said the area water does not seem to be
contaminated and it is not yet certain how it is being spread.

© 2007 The Associated Press.