Recent attacks in Iraq

[mod]

• 12 July Bomb at cafe in Kirkuk kills 38
• 13 July Bomb attacks near Sunni mosques in Baghdad kill 21
• 14 July At least 34 killed in bombings in several cities
• 19 July Twenty killed at a Sunni mosque in central Iraq
• 20 July Car bombs in Baghdad kill 30

Thats 143 killed within the last two weeks alone and we very, very rarely hear about these horrific events in our media or they are tiny stories buried far out of view.
I know I posted something similar about the completely unbalanced Western media coverage after the Boston bombings and am at risk of being repetitive but this really fucks me off.
Oh and today Al-Qaeda managed to get a few of their mates early release from prison too....
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23417029

 

[Idris2002]

Is it a strictly sectarian thing, or something else?

 

[trabuquera]

We get this debate here all the time.
One valid argument: the news is supposed to be more than just a body count (or every day's news, ever, would lead with deaths from hunger/poverty/endemic disease).

Having said that: yes, these bombings are being drastically undercovered in most Western media because they've simply lost interest after US/UK troop withdrawals. And somewhat undercovered by other world media as well because of the incredible expense, danger and complexity of reporting on sectarian violence in Iraq. (Al Jazeera's not covered itself with glory in reporting on continued Iraq violence either.)

Print media have done a lot better ... some proper more meaty analysis in broadsheets recently implies this is just yet more continuation of Sunni/Shia grudge match (and/or criminal catspaws for Saudi & Iran continuing to kill each other), if you want to look at it like that.

 

[Casually Red]

with a conservative estimate of 500 jihadists sprung from jail overnight itd be safe to assume theres going to be a lot more attacks. Thats literally a small army . Some estimate 1000 might have been sprung . The sheer scale and longevity of those twin jail assaults points to a rapidly deteriorating situation .

 

[yield]

Any evidence of arms supplied by USA, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey to the FSA in Syria ending up in Iraq?

 

[Casually Red]

Any evidence of arms supplied by USA, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey to the FSA in Syria ending up in Iraq?

theres more evidence to suggest the weaponry theyve supplied to Iraq ends up in Syria. But regardless Al Qaeda in Iraq and the Levant is the one outfit now.

 

[yield]

theres more evidence to suggest the weaponry theyve supplied to Iraq ends up in Syria. But regardless Al Qaeda in Iraq and the Levant is the one outfit now.

Iran also armed Al Qaeda in Iraq. They weren't picky anyone against the US occupation was supplied.

 

[cdg]

Iran also armed Al Qaeda in Iraq. They weren't picky anyone against the US occupation was supplied.

Really? Al qaeda?

 

[yield]

Really? Al qaeda?

They were called Jamaat al-Tawhid then. Think of Al Qaeda as a franchise.

 

[cdg]

They were called Jamaat al-Tawhid then. Think of Al Qaeda as a franchise.

I find that hard to believe as Al-Qaeda literally do hate Shi'ites.

 

[yield]

I find that hard to believe as Al-Qaeda literally do hate Shi'ites.

It isn't that black and white. Everyone deals with everyone.
Court papers chart breakdown of Saudi princes' relations with business partner
The Guardian, Thursday 16 May 2013

Almhairat claims he declined to become involved but then received a phone call from (Saudi) Prince Abdulaziz during which he was told: "We deal with whoever we want to deal with, whether it's Hezbollah, the mafia or even the Jews. The important thing is that you implement any given order without questioning.

 

[yield]

Car Bombings Kill Scores Across Iraq
nytimes. August 10, 2013

As Iraqis flooded the streets of their capital and other cities on Saturday to celebrate Id al-Fitr, the holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, a string of car bombs struck in mostly Shiite neighborhoods, killing more than 60 people, officials said.

The bombings were the latest in a surge of attacks in Iraq this summer — before, during and after Ramadan — that have brought monthly death tolls to levels not seen in nearly five years, according to United Nations figures.

Nine car bombs struck around Baghdad, the capital, at public markets and near a city park, and many exploded in Shiite neighborhoods that have borne the brunt of the increasingly violent Sunni insurgency led by Al Qaeda’s Iraq affiliate, killing at least 35 people. Other attacks — in the northern city of Tuz Khurmato, in Hilla, Karbala and Dhi Qar in the south — killed at least 26.

According to the United Nations, 1,057 Iraqis were killed and 2,326 were wounded in attacks in July, the highest monthly casualty figures since 2008.

Saddam's oppressive police state, years of sanctions, then the war and occupation and now the relentless bombings.

I need to stop reading the new. It's always so grim.

 

[Pickman's model]

yield the new is always grim until it becomes the old

 

[Barking_Mad]

So sad. Spent so much time during the war and aftermath reading articles on Iraq, and it irks me that all those pro-war wankers are now happy to ignore what's happeneing there yet get all bombastic when there's a 'terrorist activity' in the uk.

 

[yield]

Wave of deadly bombings in Baghdad claims dozens of victims

Iraq's worst wave of violence for five years continues
Independent. 28 August 2013

A co-ordinated wave of bombings tore through Shiite Muslim areas in and around the Iraqi capital early Wednesday, part of a wave of bloodshed that killed at least 65 people and wounded many more, officials said. The blasts, which came in quick succession, mainly targeted residents out shopping and on their way to work.

Relentless.

 

[silverfish]

Was there not a report somewhere suggesting the Iraqi Gvt are requesting the USA Mil to come back in......

just off to scour my history to see where I read that

 

[yield]

Was there not a report somewhere suggesting the Iraqi Gvt are requesting the USA Mil to come back in......

Doubtful

 

[silverfish]

Just a smattering of links, its sourced from Associated press

"The violence has spurred Baghdad to seek new US aid to curb the threat, said Iraqi Foreign Minister Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari. He said a US assistance package could include a limited number of advisers, intelligence analysis and surveillance assets — including lethal drones.
“There is greater realisation in the Iraq government that we should not shy away from coming and asking for some help and assistance,” Zebari told reporters on Friday in Washington"

http://news.yahoo.com/iraq-seeks-help-us-amid-growing-violence-221052797.html

http://news.sky.com/story/1129837/iraq-violence-baghdad-asks-for-us-help

http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/middle-east/249326-as-violence-escalates-baghdad-seeks-us-help.html

Looks like he's asking for the sort of specialist task force that succesfully targeted the various active groups and massively reduced the violence in Baghdad. Google Task force black/Mark Urban for a general overview

 

[Kid_Eternity]

So sad. Spent so much time during the war and aftermath reading articles on Iraq, and it irks me that all those pro-war wankers are now happy to ignore what's happeneing there yet get all bombastic when there's a 'terrorist activity' in the uk.

Yep.

 

[elbows]

Add trouble & deaths at a MEK camp to the list of Iraq woes in 2013.

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=61021

 

[yield]

Add trouble & deaths at a MEK camp to the list of Iraq woes in 2013.

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=61021

Iranian exile leader appeals for UN help
(AFP) 19/09/13

An Iranian opposition leader urged the United Nations Thursday to help free seven Iranians she said were being held in Iraq after a massacre at a camp for exiles killed 52.

The seven Iranian exiles, members of the People's Mujahedeen Organisation of Iran (PMOI), disappeared after a September 1 attack in Camp Ashraf, northeast of Baghdad, that left 52 people dead.

The PMOI charges that special Iraqi security forces that answer to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki were behind the slaughter. Iraqi authorities blame infighting within the PMOI for the deaths.

The group's leader Maryam Radjavi says the seven survivors are in Iraqi custody, and risk being sent back to Iran where they could face torture of forced disappearance.

What is that all about? Doubt the truth will come out.

Bombs inside Sunni mosque in Iraq kill 15
Reuters - Fri Sep 20, 2013

Two bombs concealed in air conditioning units inside a Sunni mosque south of the Iraqi city of Samarra exploded during Friday prayers, killing at least 15 people, police and hospital sources said.

It was not clear who was behind the attack, which took place in al-Mafraq, around 10 km (6 miles) south of Samarra.

Iraq's delicate sectarian balance has come under growing strain from the civil war in neighboring Syria, where mainly Sunni rebels are fighting to overthrow a leader backed by Shi'ite Iran.

Both Sunnis and Shi'ites have crossed into Syria from Iraq to fight on opposite sides of the conflict.

Al Qaeda's Syrian and Iraqi branches merged earlier this year to form the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which has claimed responsibility for attacks on both sides of the border.

Iraq has also witnessed several incidents in recent weeks suggesting that Shi'ite militias, which have so far refrained from retaliating to attacks by Sunni insurgents, may once again be resorting to violence.

No easy answers. I'm sure that some would want the power they'd get if Iraq broke up.

 

[yield]

Car bomb attacks across Iraq kill at least 39
Reuters. Sun Dec 8, 2013

Car bombs killed at least 39 people across Iraq on Sunday and wounded more than 120, mainly targeting busy commercial streets in and around the capital, police sources said.

The deadliest attack took place in the predominantly Shi'ite Muslim district of Bayaa in Baghdad, when a bomb in a parked vehicle exploded near car workshops, killing seven and wounding 14, the sources said.

An attack on another car workshop in the Sunni district of Taji, 20 km (12 miles) north of Baghdad, killed three and wounded 10 after nightfall.

Violence in Iraq is at the highest level in at least five years and the capital has been targeted almost daily. More than 8,000 have been killed this year, the United Nations says.

Relentless.

 

[Barking_Mad]

I see the Iraqi Government have said Al Qaeda have taken control of Fallujah and that it will take 2 to 3 days to 'take it back'. That city has seen more than enough death and destruction. Poor people.

 

[Barking_Mad]

Reports say an estimated 8,000 people died in Iraq last year. :-(

 

[mod]

I see the Iraqi Government have said Al Qaeda have taken control of Fallujah and that it will take 2 to 3 days to 'take it back'. That city has seen more than enough death and destruction. Poor people.

Seen this earlier. This is a very concerning development. US government said they wont be sending troops in again as this is "their fight". I can't remember them having to take back cities from Al Qaeda before we stuck are noses in. Fucking idiots. What a mess.

Kerry -
"We are going to do everything that is possible. I will not go into the details."
"We are not contemplating putting boots on the ground. This is their fight."

 

[Pickman's model]

Seen this earlier. This is a very concerning development. US government said they wont be sending troops in again as this is "their fight". I can't remember them having to take back cities from Al Qaeda before we stuck are noses in. Fucking idiots. What a mess.

Kerry -
"We are going to do everything that is possible. I will not go into the details."
"We are not contemplating putting boots on the ground. This is their fight."

boots on the ground? maybe not. bombs from the air? quite possibly. i wouldn'[t be surprised if us special operations forces were involved: have all the yanks gone home? or are there some left behind to help out with what the americans call 'foreign internal defence'?

 

[CNT36]

boots on the ground? maybe not. bombs from the air? quite possibly. i wouldn'[t be surprised if us special operations forces were involved: have all the yanks gone home? or are there some left behind to help out with what the americans call 'foreign internal defence'?

They left behind a few thousand security contractors.

 

[elbows]

Well they have a very large embassy indeed in Baghdad. At one point 16000 staff (including many contractors) were said to work there, although that number may have been significantly reduced in recent years, its not clear.

Last time there was a significant problem with Al-Qaeda linked groups gaining territory in Iraq, the US and friends managed to take advantage of growing Iraqi Sunni displeasure with ISIS, the behaviour of their fighters and their tactics. A movement known as 'the Awakening', consisting of tens of thousands of fighters, many of whom were previously insurgents, was assisted by the US, and got some big results. Off the top of my head this was around 2007.

 

[Pickman's model]

They left behind a few thousand security contractors.

i doubt they'll be much use

 

[elbows]

A detail that should not be forgotten when looking at recent events in Falluja is that the Iraqi government triggered fresh unrest in the region by breaking up largely Sunni protest camps.