Gorilla’s Guides

These are the main reports on the independent Iraqi news agency Aswat Al Iraq (Voices of Iraq) together with a selection of reports from other agencies.

1. Baaquba - Ali Majeed Salboukh of the United Iraqi Alliance, a member of Diyala provincial council his son and two of his brothers was shot dead in his car near Baaquba. URL
2. Baghdad - An American army of occupation soldier was killed in roadside bomb attack southwest of Baghdad on Monday. the first U.S. casualty in 2007, a U.S. army statement said. This raises the number of American casualties in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003 to 3,003 killed and more than 22,000 wounded according to U.S. data.

   The article gives these statistics for the worst months for American invader deaths:

   • November 2004 = 137
   • April 2004 = 135
   • January 2005 = 107
   • October 2006 = 106
   • December 2006 = 113

URL

1. Baghdad - 22 unidentified bodies have been found. 17 in al-Aazamiya (north Baghdad,) and 5 in Nahrawan (south Baghdad.) All had been shot, most had been tortured. On Monday, police patrols found 32 bodies were scattered in various parts of Baghdad. URL
2. Baghdad - Seven Iraqi civilians were wounded in a bombing in Kemp Sara (southeast of Baghdad). URL
3. Baghdad - American Army of Occupation forces killed the coach of Iraq’s basketball team for the disabled in front of his house in in al-Mansour, western Baghdad, according to an official in Iraq’s Paralympics Committee.
   

   “U.S. troops killed Ibrahim Abdullah on Monday after he was seen carrying a gun in front of his house,” Paralympics Committee Secretary General Fakher al-Jamali told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

   “The Americans, thinking that Abdullah was carrying a gun to attack them, opened a volley of fire at his direction, instantly killing him ,” said Jamali, adding that Abdullah had “stepped out of his house with his gun after he was told that an armed group was attacking the neighbourhood where he lived.”

   Abdullah, the coach for the national team in 1995, led the Iraqi team to qualify to the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

   Several Iraqi athletes have been targets for killings and kidnappings, the most recent of which was the killing of a former wrestling coach last week in a car bombing in the Baghdad’s al-Aazamiya neighbourhood.

   The fate of Ahmad al-Hijiya, the head of the Iraqi Olympic Committee, and several members of the Committee’s executive bureau, who had been kidnapped by an unidentified armed group mid-2006, is still unknown. URL

   [Still also unknown is the fate of the schoolboys in the TaeKwon Do team - markromireland]

4. Baghdad - U.S. Army of ocupation forces raided the Imam al-Muntazhir mosque al-Hurriya district early this morning. They ransacked the Mossque and cordoned several streets in the area eyewitnesses said.

   [Al-Hurriya was the scene of several suicide bombings on the first day of Eid al-Adha, more than 50 people were killed and 150 others wounded, mostly women and children who were shopping for the festival - markfromireland.]   URL

5. Baghdad - Four members of the same family were dragged from their car in al-Madain, (southeast of Baghdad,) and shot. Accoding to eyewitnesses the gunmen stopped their car forced them out and shot them. It’s not immediately clear if this killing was directly linked to the execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on Saturday. URL

   [Hint: Read between the lines - markfromireland]

6. Fallujah - An American Army of Occupation patrol was attacked by a bomber using a roadside bomb in Saqlawiya (15 Km North of Fallujah -mfi.) A Humvee was destroyed but it was not clear if there were casualties among troops. URL

Other Summary Reports:

Below are some of the main reports from Western Agencies. As always don’t forget to checkout Today In Iraq for extended reporting and analysis:

Reuters (Alertnet)

• Angry Sunnis march, Saddam video inquiry promised
  02 Jan 2007 17:36:36 GMT
  Source: Reuters
  (Adds senior court official almost halted execution) By Claudia Parsons and Ibon Villelabeitia BAGHDAD, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Thousands of Sunni Arabs vented their anger on Tuesday over Saddam Hussein …  Full article
• FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, Jan 2
  02 Jan 2007 17:34:35 GMT
  Source: Reuters
  Jan 2 (Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq as of 1730 GMT on Tuesday: * Indicates a new or updated entry * BAGHDAD - Police in Baghdad found the bodies of 45 people, most …  Full article