Iraq

Chief selected for Fallujah force

BAGHDAD - American military commanders said Monday that they had selected a new commander for the Iraqi security force in Fallujah, dropping a general who had been accused of involvement in widespread repression under Saddam Hussein.

The American commanders said they had chosen Muhammad Latif, a former intelligence officer, to lead the Iraqi security force. Unlike the man he is replacing, Maj. Gen. Jassim Muhammed Saleh, Latif appears to have been an opponent of Hussein.

According to a former Iraqi officer who served under him, Latif was imprisoned for seven years in the 1990s after he disobeyed an order from Hussein involving the movement of his troops.

Saleh, who moved into Fallujah on Friday as the head of the new brigade, will likely take a subordinate position to Latif, media outlets reported, quoting officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Fighting continued in many parts of Iraq on Monday. South of Baghdad, one American soldier was killed and two were wounded in an attack on a group of soldiers who were guarding a weapons cache that had been discovered the night before. In another incident, a Marine was killed in Anbar Province west of Baghdad during a "security and stability" operation.

In the holy Shiite city of Najaf, sustained gunbattles broke out between U.S. soldiers and the followers of Muqtada al-Sadr when members of his militia, known as the Mahdi Army, attacked an American base and a convoy inside the city. While there were no reports of U.S. casualties, hospital officials in Najaf reported that five Iraqis had been killed and 20 injured.

Three Florida service members have died in recent violence in Iraq. Spc. Justin B. Schmidt, 23, of Bradenton and Pfc. Jeremy Ricardo Ewing, 22, of Miami were killed Thursday during a car bomb attack on their convoy near Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Jason B. Dwelley, 31, of Apopka died Friday after an explosive hit his vehicle.

EDITOR QUITS: The head of Al-Sabah, a U.S.-funded Iraqi newspaper, quit and said Monday he was taking almost his entire staff with him because of American interference in the publication. Editor-in-chief Ismail Zayer had sought to break Al-Sabah away from the Iraqi Media Network, which is run by Harris Inc., a Florida communications company.

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