http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/5162510.stm Gunmen in the Iraqi capital Baghdad have killed at least 40 people at a fake police checkpoint, in an apparent sectarian attack against Sunni Muslims. Police say Shia militants stopped cars in the western Jihad district, separated Sunnis and shot them. Later, at least 25 people died when two car bombs exploded near a Shia mosque in the capital, police said. There has been an upsurge in sectarian violence in Iraq in recent months, raising fears of a civil war. Sunni Arabs say government-backed Shia militias are behind many of the attacks. But officials have denied any involvement. The BBC's Jonny Dymond in Baghdad says the style and scale of Sunday morning's incident was breathtaking. Witnesses said Shia militiamen entered Jihad and set up roadblocks. They came and started shooting - one of my relatives tried to help but was also shot Eyewitness Drivers were reportedly pulled from their cars and their identity cards inspected. Any Sunni Muslims identified were then separated from the rest and killed. "They also went into certain Sunni houses and killed everyone inside," said a witness quoted by AFP news agency. Call for calm Another told the Associated Press news agency: "They came and started shooting. One of my relatives tried to help but was also shot while doing so. What crime have my people committed, I ask?" Officials say they are getting reports of drive-by shootings in the area, and the number of deaths is expected to rise. Security forces have sealed off the area and imposed a curfew, in an effort to prevent revenge attacks. Officials said the shooting could be in retaliation for a car bomb that killed at least two people at a nearby Shia mosque on Saturday. Radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr appealed for calm following the shootings. Mr Sadr calls on Sunnis and Shias to "put our hands together for the sake of Iraq's independence and stability", AP quoted him as saying. Mr Sadr's Mehdi Army militia was suspected of involvement in the attacks, but Mr Sadr's office denied any responsibility. 'Revenge' attack In more bloodshed hours after the shootings, Baghdad's northern Kasra district was rocked by the double car bomb attack. Police said the vehicles exploded in a market place near the local Shia mosque, killing at least 25 people and wounding dozens of others. Our correspondent says it may have been revenge for Sunday morning's attack or it may have been planned beforehand. But he says whatever the motive, the impact is the same: Iraq's capital is tearing itself apart. A wave of sectarian killings has engulfed many parts of Iraq - especially Baghdad - since the bombing in February of a revered Shia shrine in Samarra. In other violence on Sunday, an Iraqi army intelligence officer was shot dead in Karbala, south of Baghdad. Several policemen and civilians were also killed in separate attacks around the country.
The US has certainly brought a peaceful democracy and stability to the area???? Isn't that what the war was supposed to be about?
10 July 2006 Source Links:'Unknown Americans' Are Provoking Civil War in Iraq (The independent-UK)America's Iraqi Slaughterhouse, Not a Civil War – who bombed the Golden-domed mosqueAllah knows Best... *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens
randomrules HUh! Why are they there, who is the responsible for this, they were living together all these years without problems!!!! was the first who flamed it that an agent? why not, I can expect this from an Evil like US, Looking for excuses to stay there, we aren't stupid, they cannot Deceiveus easily,tell them to get out , soldiers from Arab world is betta, Evils don't help innocent ppl. US Huh! There are many solutions but yeah they won't accept it 'cause they want to saty there with their bad smells . *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely, Cat Stevens
that's because the minourity sunnis were in power and violently controlled the non-sunni population. "without problems" i'm sure every non-sunni who lived under saddam would've loved to live in your wonderful little dream world.
They invaded Iraq in 2003 now we are in 2006 OH maybe they realized that they aren't in power lately Zarqawi died, Let's look for new excuse, first was the weapons, then insurgents from Saddam's regime then Al-Qaeda & Zarqawi ...how stupid the US is *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens
We are currently there, why didn't our presence prevent these deaths? We support this new supposedly "democratic" government, that may be behind these attrocities. Denial and political spin seem to be the only things the US has been successful in spreading to Iraq.
Super excellent point That means their presence does nothing there *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens
Things like this take time and patience. The American Revolution lasted for 20 years. The French Revolution lasted for 10. Was Saddam Hussein not a Sunni? And did his regime not use terror and fear to control the population?
But those revolutions were started by the citizens of those countries, not by an outside power. Because someone else behaved badly in the past, bad behavior is justified by others currently. When is it called to end? Isn't that why the US is told we had to remove him, now you are justifying similar behavior by the those we helped put in power. Just what did the US intervention accomplish?
Apparently amongst a multiplicity of other failures of reason and consistent application of principle, the justifiers of illegal war of aggression are now also incapable of differentiating between "revolution" and "foreign invasion and occupation". Funny too how the standard to which they also continuously revert in order to reinforce their unqestioned delusion of a better situation for Iraqis is the very behaviour they railed against in their demand for the immediate necessity of intevention in the first place. Its all simply indicative of how unaware and truly unconcerned they are for the reality of our latest (in a very long succession of the same) expansionistic military expedition against a weaker nation for purposes of corporate hegemonic dominance.
Don't paint all citizens of the US with the same brush Cat. Many of us objected to this intrusion in your area of the world. We were not able to prevail, but some of us continue to try to enlighten those that were swayed by spin and media coverage. Not all of us stink, I think. Just as I know that not all Muslims or Arabs are terrorists, this is just the spin that Washington wants to put on things to make their points more palatable. If we ever stopping viewing the world as other humans with similar needs and desires we fall into the grip of those that want to manipulate us. Pat
Nothing gets by you. I'm not justifying anything. But revenge happens. And we are trying to end things like this. Obviously. Yes, because you can read my mind.
Time to steal more things, kill more (religious, scholars, scientists) peo ple, build their embassy, plant their agents , spreading Christianity ( I watched a document for that ) destroying touristic places and letting theives steal etc Excuses to saty there, get out and get soldiers from the middle -East but yeah they won't accept it and will give stupid excuses to saty, if they want peace there they can do so, 2003 -2006 Oh that's too much So... *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens
War on terrorism, changing the regime, WMD, relations with Al-Qaeda, yeah which excuse IS THE BEST, The regime, oh No the WMD, Couldn't be found, OH Baath party we defeated them look for other excuse, yeah Al-Zarqawi what next, HUH liars, criminals, evils, SatanS *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens
Better situations like, Nudity, raping, leaving islam and embracing Christianity, polluted water & air etc , huh! Iraq is worse than before under Saddam regime, who empowered Saddam, let's not forget that dudes =) *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens
And when did I do so! when I say US I mean the leaders, those who has the power, the white house, the president, their policy etc I wrote they won't accept it 'cause they (who are they?)want to saty there (where?) with their bad smells . *Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens
And by you I guess Ending what they created and did, huh! Anyway, revenge for what Nah, are ya sure,I think because he cannot be deceived. He has sound ears, eyes and brain.*Peace and love* Yours Sincerely,Cat Stevens