7 die in Baghdad blast; Green Zone shelled

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

BAGHDAD (AP) — Seven people died in Baghdad's Sadr City as clashes between security forces and Shiite militiamen continued in the capital on Wednesday, the fifth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad.
The city's Green Zone, which houses diplomatic missions and much of Iraq's government, also came under renewed attack by rockets or mortars early Wednesday. The U.S. embassy confirmed the shelling, but said there were no immediate reports of casualties.

The bloodshed served as stark reminders of Iraq's continuing instability five years after U.S. troops swept into Baghdad and toppled Saddam Hussein's regime on April 9, 2003. The euphoria of victory soon dissipated — pummeled first by a Sunni insurgency, then Sunni-Shiite slaughter and now battles against Shiite militiamen.

Police said the seven victims in Sadr City — including three children — died when projectiles slammed into a house in the sprawling slum, a stronghold of the Mahdi Army militia of anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.



Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2008-04-09-iraq-wednesday_N.htm?csp=34

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Baghdad anniversary curfew fails to stop violence
By Ahmed Rasheed and Wisam Mohammed
49 minutes ago



BAGHDAD (Reuters) - At least a dozen people were killed in Baghdad's Shi'ite slum of Sadr City despite a partial curfew to stop Wednesday's fifth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad being marked in blood.

Police said six people died in clashes overnight, and an explosion in the morning whose cause was unclear hit a funeral inside Sadr City, killing six more and wounding 14 people.

Qasim al-Mudalla said four bodies and 23 wounded had been brought to the Imam Ali hospital he manages in Sadr City, where U.S. and Iraqi forces have battled militia loyal to cleric Moqtada al-Sadr since Sunday.

"What are they doing? The floor of the hospital is covered with the blood of children. What is the world doing? They have seen the blood of our children and are doing nothing," he told Reuters.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080409/wl_nm/iraq_dc

[Botany]

1. And why are we there again?

WMDs .... 9/11 .... Freedom .... Democracy .... Mideast Stability .....
Fight Terrorists

We have helped make a hell on earth so Dick Cheney and friends can
steal oil and make a pile of money.

[cal04]

2. Green Zone hit 5 years after Baghdad's fall

Attack on fortified area follows Petraeus report, al-Sadr cease-fire threat
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24024652/

Witnesses said a rocket or mortar had been fired into the Green Zone in the Iraqi capital, The Associated Press reported on Wednesday. There was no immediate word on casualties or damage. The attack occurred despite a government imposed one-day curfew on the capital for the fifth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad.

Black smoke could be see rising after a blast from the heavily fortified area. While helicopters circled overhead, loudspeakers warned residents to take cover and await further instructions.

The shelling Wednesday was the latest in a series of attacks on the part of Baghdad that houses the Iraqi government and U.S. Embassy. Two U.S. soldiers died in a similar attack last week.

The attack comes a day after top U.S. commander Gen. David Petraeus called in Washington for an open-ended suspension of U.S. troop withdrawals this summer because of concern over the renewed fighting.

[saigon68]

3. "BRING EM ON" shouted the AWOL CHIMPANZEE

[Supersedeas]

4. expect to hear more media establishment script -- progress progress progress