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Last week in Iraq

By Times Wires
Published March 11, 2007

Attacks

- A suicide car bomber struck a Baghdad book market Monday, killing 38 people and injuring more than 50. Gunmen opened fire on Shiite pilgrims in several places around Baghdad, killing at least seven people, and 30 bullet-riddled bodies were found around the city.

- Bombers and gunmen killed more than 110 Shiite Muslim pilgrims making a traditional trek on foot to the shrine city of Karbala and wounded more than 250 others in scores of sectarian attacks Tuesday.

- The U.S. military command reported Tuesday that nine American servicemen were killed in two blasts north of Baghdad on Monday. Six soldiers were killed and three others wounded during combat in Salahaddin province. Three others died while conducting combat operations in Diyala province.

- A suicide attacker blew himself up in a cafe northeast of Baghdad Wednesday, killing 30 people as a wave of violence left 90 Iraqis dead throughout the country. Police reported finding 10 bullet-riddled bodies throughout Baghdad on Wednesday, most showing signs of torture. Two more were found in the Tigris river south of Baghdad.

- The U.S. military said Wednesday that three American soldiers were killed trying to clear explosives from a major highway just north of Baghdad.

Military

- A quiet but dramatic advance in Sadr City on Sunday - involving nearly 1,200 U.S. and Iraqi forces who didn't fire a shot - marked one of the most significant developments in the security clampdown in Baghdad since it took effect nearly three weeks ago.

- U.S. Army medic Agustin Aguayo, 35, who refused to return to Iraq because he believes war is morally wrong, was convicted of desertion Tuesday and sentenced to an eight-month prison term at a one-day court martial at the Army's Leighton Barracks near Wuerzburg, Germany.

- The new U.S. commander in Iraq acknowledged Thursday that U.S.-led forces could not protect all Iraqis from "thugs with no soul" bent on reigniting sectarian warfare. "Any student of history recognizes that there is no military solution to a problem like that in Iraq," Army Gen. David Petraeus said at his first news conference since assuming command last month. Political negotiations are vital, Petraeus said.

- American soldiers were accused on Friday of opening fire on a car carrying a family in the Baghdad district of Sadr City, killing a man and his two young daughters and wounding his son. The allegations were made by the man's wife, Ikhlas Thulsiqar, who was in the car, and members of the Iraqi police, who were at the scene. The military said it was investigating.

Rebuilding

- Tariq Aziz, whose posts included foreign minister and deputy prime minister in Saddam Hussein's former regime, said Monday that there "was no genocide" against Iraqi Kurds and blamed Iran for an infamous poison gas attack in 1988 on the Kurdish town of Halabja that killed an estimated 5,600 people.

- The Fadhila Party, which holds 15 of the 275 seats in Parliament, on Wednesday pulled out of the governing United Iraqi Alliance, the Shiite parliamentary bloc. Fadhila leaders said they wanted to defuse sectarian influences in Iraqi politics.

- Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, flanked by guards toting machine guns, ventured out of the Green Zone to tour parts of Baghdad on Friday, chatting on the streets with bystanders and police to show the U.S.-led crackdown is making progress.

Deaths

As of Saturday, 3,189 U.S. troops have died in Iraq. Identifications as reported by the U.S. military and not previously published:

- Army Spc. Ryan M. Bell, 21, Colville, Wash.; explosion Monday; Samarra.

- Marine Lance Cpl. Raul S. Bravo, 21, Elko, Nev.; small-arms fire March 3; Anbar province.

- Navy Hospitalman Lucas W.A. Emch, 21, Kent, Ohio; explosion March 2; Anbar province.

- Army Staff Sgt. Justin M. Estes, 25, Sims, Ark.; explosion Monday; Samarra.

- Marine Staff Sgt. Dustin M. Gould, 28, Longmont, Colo.; small-arms fire March 2; Anbar province.

- Army Pvt. Mark W. Graham, 22, Lafayette, La.; Wednesday, following an explosion March 2; Baghdad.

- Army Spc. Blake Harris, 22, Pueblo, Colo.; explosion Monday; Baqubah.

- Army Staff Sgt. Darrel D. Kasson, 43, Florence, Ariz.; explosion March 4; Tikrit.

- Army Pfc. Cory C. Kosters, 19, The Woodlands, Texas; explosion Monday; Samarra.

- Army Staff Sgt. Paul M. Latourney, 28, Roselle, Ill.; explosion March 2; Baghdad.

- Army Pvt. Barry W. Mayo, 21, Ecru, Miss., explosion Monday; Baqubah.

- Army Sgt. Ashly L. Moyer, 21, Emmaus, Pa.; explosion March 3; Baghdad.

- Army Sgt. Brandon A. Parr, 25, West Valley, Utah; explosion March 3; Baghdad.

- Army Sgt. Michael C. Peek, 23, Chesapeake, Va.; explosion March 3; Baghdad.

- Army Sgt. Andrew C. Perkins, 27, Northglenn, Colo.; explosion Monday; Samarra.

- Army Spc. Shawn P. Rankinen, 28, Independence, Mo.; explosion Wednesday; Baghdad.

- Army Spc. Michael D. Rivera, 22, Brooklyn, N.Y.; explosion Wednesday; Baghdad.

- Army Spc. Luis O. Rodriguez-Contrera, 22, Allentown, Pa.; explosion March 2; Baghdad.

- Army Spc. Justin A. Rollins, 22, Newport, N.H.; explosion Monday; Samarra.

- Army Spc. Ryan D. Russell, 20, Elm City, N.C.; explosion Monday; Baqubah.

- Army Staff Sgt. Karl O. Soto-Pinedo, 22, San Juan, Puerto Rico; small-arms fire Feb. 27; Baghdad.

- Army Staff Sgt. Robert M. Stanley, 27, Spotsylvania, Va.; explosion Monday; Samarra.

- Navy Lt. Cmdr. Morgan C. Tulang, 36, Hilo, Hawaii; noncombat-related injury March 2; Kuwait City, Kuwait.

- Army Staff Sgt. Christopher R. Webb, 28, Winchester, Calif.; explosion Wednesday; Baghdad.

- Army Pvt. Wesley J. Williams, 23, Philadelphia; noncombat-related injury March 2; Baghdad.

- Army Spc. Christopher D. Young, 20, Los Angeles; explosion March 2; Safwan.

[Last modified March 11, 2007, 00:59:02]