Wednesday: 2 GIs, 199 Iraqis Killed or Reported Dead; 3 GIs, 137 Wounded

In the wake of U.S. elections and the lifting of curfews, the persistent violence in Iraq resumed at an accelerated pace. At least 199 Iraqis were killed or reported dead and 137 more were injured in various attacks around the country. Three foreigners either serving in the Coalition or working alongside it were also reported killed, including one U.S. soldier and one Marine. Three other U.S. soldiers were also wounded.

One American soldier was killed and three others wounded in the same incident in Kirkuk Province. Also a Marine died due to wounds received from enemy action in Anbar Province. It was also reported today that a British athlete working for a private security company in Iraq was killed Monday in a multiple-vehicle collision caused by a roadside bomb blast. Coalition forces also reported attacking an al Qaeda cell in the Muqdadiya area; ten suspects, possibly of foreign origin, were killed and a policeman was rescued. Another four suspects were killed and 48 more detained in a Coalition raid in Ramadi. Also, the Multi-National Force reported that a joint Iraqi and Coalition force came under attack near Dugmat on Nov. 6; eight gunmen were killed in the ensuing battle. MNF also reports that 38 other militiamen were killed and nine more wounded a day earlier due to a gun battle involving Multi-National Division soldiers.

In the greater Baghdad area, 29 bodies, probable victims of sectarian violence, were discovered late Tuesday into Wednesday. Mortars killed eight people and wounded 20 when they fell on a Sadr City district soccer game. Another mortar fell in the Shi'ite Kadhimiya neighborhood, killing two and wounding eight. A mortar round also fell in the al-Qahira district, killing one and wounding six. Two mortars struck al-Amin square in central Baghdad and wounded eight people. Two more fell on the nearby Ministry of Health building, killing three and wounding eight. And in the Sunni Adhamiya neighborhood, mortars killed one and wounded 12 others.

There was a spate of car bombings around Baghdad as well. In the southwestern Amil district, a car bomb killed three and wounded three others. A car bomb in an unspecified northern neighborhood killed one and wounded six. Yet another car bomb wounded four police commandos in the eastern Baladiyat district. A car bomb targeting a southern checkpoint killed a member of the National Police. And a car bomb in the Mansour neighborhood killed one and wounded three. Also, a Shi’ite bakery was the scene of a gun attack where one man was killed and four others injured.

In Baquba medical authorities reported the discovery of 38 unidentified bodies in the city’s cemetary. Another twelve people were killed and six wounded in separate incidents: Gunmen killed four people, and a roadside bomb killed four others. Outside of town, two policemen were killed, and in nearby Khalis a father and son were shot dead.

In a Mahmudiya marketplace, a car bomb killed six people and wounded 28 others.

Six gunshot bodies were discovered scattered around Mosul.

A suicide car bomber exploded his cargo near a U.S. convoy in Ramadi, but five civilians were wounded instead.

A car bomb in Muqdadiya killed four people and injured six others. Near town, gunmen killed four related people including two policemen.

Clashes between two Sunni tribes in Dhida resulted in five deaths.

In a small village near Kirkuk, clashes between gunmen and the Iraqi army resulted in nine dead gunmen and one wounded Iraqi soldier.

A roadside bomb near a house in Iskandariya killed a man and his 13-year old son.

In Tikrit, two police lieutenants were killed.

Compiled by Margaret Griffis