12 Iraqis Killed, Including 6 Executed by Death Squads, Green Zone Attacked With Mortars During Condy Rice's Visit, a January 15, 2008 Report

Yaqen.net reported the following:

- A policeman was killed and another was injured in a roadside bomb attack, in Mosul.

Green Zone comes under mortar attack

Baghdad - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Baghdad, Jan 15, (VOI)-

The fortified Green Zone in central Baghdad came under mortar shells attack on Tuesday, an interior ministry's source said.

"Five mortar rounds fell into the Green Zone on Tuesday," the Interior ministry source told Aswat al- Iraq - Voices of Iraq (VOI).

The source did not provide information about casualties or material damage.
The attack coincided with the snap visit of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Iraq on Tuesday.

The Green Zone in central Baghdad is the seat of the Iraqi government offices and the compound of the U.S. and British embassies.

AM/SH

Senior anti-Qaeda leader killed in central Baghdad

Baghdad - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Baghdad, Jan 15, (VOI)-

A senior (US-recruited) Awakening Council leader was killed, two of his aides and four civilians were injured in clashes that flared up in al-Nahda neighborhood in central Baghdad, an interior ministry's source said on Tuesday.

"Fierce clashes erupted this afternoon near al-Sadriya marketplace in al-Nahda region in central Baghdad between unknown gunmen and a force from al-Fadl neighborhood's Awakening Council," the source, who asked to remain anonymous, told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI).

"Khudier Lafta Matar, al-Fadl Awakening Council official, was killed and two of his aides were injured in the clashes," he added.

"Four civilians were also injured," the source noted. "Iraqi security forces cordoned off the area, preventing pedestrians or vehicles from entering the region," he also said. He did not provide further details.

Kidnapped civilian found dead in Mosul

Ninewa - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Mosul, Jan 15, (VOI)-

A civilian who was kidnapped last week was found dead in eastern Mosul, a police source said on Tuesday.

"Police patrols found this afternoon a civilian body in al-Intasar neighborhood in eastern Mosul," the source, who asked to remain anonymous, told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI).

"The body had gunshot wounds to the head and chest," he added.

"He was kidnapped last week by unknown gunmen in Somer neighborhood in southeastern Mosul," the source said quoting the civilian's family.
Mosul, the capital of Ninewa, lies 405 km north of Baghdad.

Six unidentified bodies found in Baghdad

Baghdad - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Baghdad, Dec 15, (VOI)-

Iraqi police patrols on Tuesday found six unknown bodies dumped in different parts of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, a police source said.

"Police patrols found six unidentified bodies in different areas of Baghdad, most of them were found in Baghdad's eastern side (Rasafa)," the source told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

"Four corpses were found in different neighborhoods of Rasafa: two in Ziyouna and one in each al-Baladyat and Kamb Sara," he explained.

"Two more bodies were found in al-Sidiya neighborhood in western Baghdad," the source added.

"Most of the bodies found bore signs of gunshot wounds to different parts of the body, mainly to the head," he noted.

Cop killed, two anti-Qaeda fighters injured in Salah el-Din

Salah al-Din - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Tikrit, Jan 15, (VOI)-

A policeman was killed and eight others, including two Awakening Council fighters, were injured on Tuesday in two simultaneous suicide attacks targeting a senior officer north of Tikrit, a police source said.

"Two suicide bombers targeted Colonel Ismail al-Juburi, chief of the eastern coast police in Shurqat, while leading police forces and Awakening Council fighters in a security operation against gunmen in western Shurqat," the source told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI) under condition of anonymity.

"A suicide bomber blew up an explosive belt strapped to his body near a checkpoint without leaving casualties," he explained.

"A few minutes later, another bomber blew up a car rigged with explosives amid a gathering of police and Awakening Council fighters, killing a policeman and injuring two fighters and six civilians," he noted.

Tikrit, the capital of Salah el-Din, is 175 km north of the Iraqi capital.

British reconnaissance plane goes down in Basra

Basra - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Basra, Jan 15, (VOI) –

A British reconnaissance plane went down on Monday night in Basra due to bad weather conditions (!), a Multi-National Force (MNF) spokesman said.

"A British pilotless reconnaissance plane went down in Basra International Airport as a result of bad weather conditions," an MNF media spokesman, southern Iraq, told Aswat al-Iraq- Voices of Iraq- (VOI).

The accident did not cause any damage to the airport's facilities, the spokesman indicated.

British forces are stationed in the Basra International Airport, 25 km northwest of the city, the British troops' only base in Iraq now after withdrawing from the former presidential palaces in central Basra.

Britain, which maintains a force of 5,250 soldiers working within the MNF in Iraq, was the United States' prime ally in the March 2003 invasion of Iraq. Some 1,850 British troops were pulled out of Iraq during the past months.

Basra lies 590 km south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad.

7 wounded as IED goes off in central Baghdad

Baghdad - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Baghdad, Jan 15, (VOI) –

Seven people, including two policemen, were wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off in central Baghdad on Tuesday morning, police said.

"The IED, planted by unidentified gunmen on the main road in the central Baghdad district of al-Karrada, went off as a police patrol was passing by on Tuesday morning, wounding seven including two patrol policemen and causing damage to another civilian vehicle," a security source, who preferred not to have his name mentioned, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).

"Iraqi security forces sealed off the attack scene while ambulances rushed the wounded to a nearby hospital," he said.

Oil refinery fire wounds 10

Basra - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Basra, Jan 15, (VOI)-

Al-Sheiaba oil refinery fire left ten persons wounded and huge damage to refining and liquefied-petrol gas (LPG) Units, Basra governor said on Tuesday.

“The fire that broke out in al-Sheiaba refinery was huge, leaving ten persons wounded and huge damage to the refining unit, fusing five LPG reservoirs and its adjoining pipes”, Basra Governor Mohamed Musabih al-Waili said in press conference convened in Basra’s provincial building on Tuesday.
He added “the fire erupted on Tuesday at 7 am at the workers change shift and was under control in two hours”.

He pointed “an investigating committee was formed to assess the accident and check whether the fire was caused by arson”.

However, he ruled out the fire would “affect the delivery of oil products to southern stations” and pledged to take “fast measures to repair the damaged units”.
Earlier today, a local official from Basra province raised speculations that the fire was the result of an "act of sabotage."

A spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Oil said that a Multi-National Force (MNF) aircraft was behind the blaze that tore through al-Sheiaba oil refinery, west of Basra, during the early hours of Tuesday morning,

"A chopper belonging to the coalition forces was behind the huge blaze that ripped through al-Sheiaba oil refinery in southern Iraq on Tuesday," Aasem Jihad told Aswat al-Iraq- Voices of Iraq- (VOI).

"The ministry had repeatedly asked the coalition forces to change the passage of their aircrafts and to avoid hovering over oil facilities," Jihad indicated.
"Gas emissions resulting from oil production and refinement stimulate the spark of fire in the presence of any contributory factor," the spokesman explained.

Fire engines and civil defense teams managed to control the fire, which caused damage to the refinery's gas unit and left several workers with varying wounds, Jihad said, adding that investigations are currently underway to evaluate the damage caused by the fire.

Al-Sheiaba, one of the largest refineries in southern Iraq, lies 20 km west of Basra province. Established in 1974, the refinery is not the first time to catch fire. A fire in the oil facility in 2004 caused severe damage.

Iraqi oil facilities in northern and southern Iraq occasionally come under attacks by gunmen or suffer from technical failure that immensely affect the country's production of oil derivatives. This prompted Iraq, one of the countries with largest oil reserves worldwide, to sign contracts with some neighboring countries like Kuwait and Iran to import oil products to meet local needs.
AM/SK

Coalition aircraft behind Sheiaba refinery's blaze- ministry

Baghdad - Voices of Iraq
Tuesday , 15 /01 /2008 Time 10:24:03

Baghdad, Jan 15, (VOI) -

A Multi-National Force (MNF) aircraft was behind the blaze that tore through al-Sheiaba oil refinery, west of Basra, during the early hours of Tuesday morning, a spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Oil said.

"A chopper belonging to the coalition forces was behind the huge blaze that ripped through al-Sheiaba oil refinery in southern Iraq on Tuesday," Aasem Jihad told Aswat al-Iraq- Voices of Iraq- (VOI).

"The ministry had repeatedly asked the coalition forces to change the passage of their aircrafts and to avoid hovering over oil facilities," Jihad indicated.

"Gas emissions resulting from oil production and refinement stimulate the spark of fire in the presence of any contributory factor," the spokesman explained.
Fire engines and civil defense teams managed to control the fire, which caused damage to the refinery's gas unit and left several workers with varying wounds, Jihad said, adding that investigations are currently underway to evaluate the damage caused by the fire.

Earlier today, a local official from Basra province raised speculations that the fire was the result of an "act of sabotage."

"Explosions, which could be either explosive charges or Katyusha rockets, were heard before the fire broke out," the source said, adding "the fire started in two fuel-producing units and then spread to other parts of the refinery."
Al-Sheiaba, one of the largest refineries in southern Iraq, lies 20 km west of Basra province. Established in 1974, the refinery is not the first time to catch fire. A fire in the oil facility in 2004 caused severe damage.

Iraqi oil facilities in northern and southern Iraq occasionally come under attacks by gunmen or suffer from technical failure that immensely affect the country's production of oil derivatives.

This prompted Iraq, one of the countries with largest oil reserves worldwide, to sign contracts with some neighboring countries like Kuwait and Iran to import oil products to meet local needs.

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