Sky News UK's David Chater, live from Baghdad

[DeepModem Mom]

Wednesday morning:

Chater quotes an Iraqi as calling the situation in his country a "mess," and says this is a "dangerous time for the Coalition," with "mounting casualties." He says a "small but effective" uprising has "innocent civilians caught in the middle." He says Sadr's army is "a very small faction," but U.S. tactics risk bringing moderates to his cause. Chater talks repeatedly about the poor Baghdad area of Sadr City, densely populated and full of families. He says that American helicopter raids in that neighborhood are seen by all there as a "strike against themselves."

He says Sadr has successfully "carried the fight" to all Coalition forces now, except the Japanese. He credits British and Italian forces with "getting successful peaceful solutions," while American "bullying tactics" are not having the same result. He says, "The generals have got to examine their strategy." He says the longer the uprising goes on, the more "peaceful Shia moderates" will support it. He says the goal of the uprising is to "derail the June 30 handover," and get American trooops out.

He mentioned recent fighting in Karbala, in which both Iraqis and Iranians were killed. He said Fallujah was thought to be coming under control, when another front opened up in nearby Ramadi, led by local tribesmen.

[DeepModem Mom]

1. Adding report from Sky's website, with civilian death numbers

IRAQ'S RISING DEATH TOLL

A senior US general in Iraq has vowed to destroy a Shi'ite militia led by radical cleric Muqtada al Sadr that has launched a wave of attacks against coalition forces. The promise came as fighting between members of the militia and occupying troops intensified with 130 deaths in Shi'ite areas of Iraq since Sunday....

***

In Karbala, five Iranians and three Iraqis were reported killed and 16 wounded during overnight clashes between US troops and rebels.

Four Iraqis died in an American air raid on the Shi'ite district of Sadr City in Baghdad and three more died from wounds sustained in fighting a day earlier.

Earlier, a dozen US marines were killed in Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad, in an area known to troops as the Sunni Triangle. The marines' position was attacked by dozens of Iraqis and reports put the death toll after an intense battle as high as 130...

***

Fighting in Fallujah has resulted in 60 civilian deaths over the past day, including 25 killed in a house destroyed, according to local people, by rockets fired by a US helicopter....

Last Updated: 10:09 UK, Wednesday April 07, 2004


http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-13050605,00...

[maddezmom]

3. possibly more that 150 Iraqis

~snip~
Depending on the number of Ramadi deaths, Tuesday's casualties could have brought the total since Sunday as high as about 30 Americans and more than 150 Iraqis killed in the fighting.
~snip~
more: http://www.sacbee.com/24hour/front/story/1271314p-83576...

[DeepModem Mom]

4. Sky now reporting 25 dead in one house -- denied by U.S....

spokesman -- and "casualties mounting by the moment" in Fallujah.

[jmcgowanjm]

9. Al Sadr broadcasting from captured TVstation in Kut

Further escalating the heat on U.S. forces was a
decree, not a fatwa, issued by the fiery cleric Muqtada
al-Sadr who declared that the U.S. Army is treating Iraqis
worse than Saddam ever did.

various Shia clerics have vowed that if al-Sadr and the
Shia community continue to suffer at the hands of U.S.
forces, there will be moves to create an Islamic army
comprising Shia and Sunnis to resist the occupation.

http://www.yellowtimes.org/article.php?sid=1855&mode=th...

Iraq could be increasingly on the verge of all-out war.

[jmcgowanjm]

6. 130 SOLDIERS KILLED IN IRAQ - REPORTS

http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1130577,00....

A Pentagon source has said up to 130 US troops have
been killed in fierce fighting in Iraq.

The large scale battle, described as "intense", has taken

place in the town of Ar Ramadi, 20 miles west of Fallujah.

Sky News' David Chater said: "None of this is official yet -
none of it is confirmed."

[Cooley Hurd]

7. This has been going around since last night...

Sky (nor anyone else, for that matter) has been able to confirm that number...

[jmcgowanjm]

10. If this # got confirmed it would be a Beirut moment

And I've heard nothing from anyone in Ramadi.

This is what happens when Media is totally censored.

And you can bet the Arab world will believe this until
pics of US in command of Ramadi show up.

Jesus, CNN is having to steal video feed from
AlJazeera because world media demands info
on Fallujah and CNN doesn't have the cojones
to go in there.

[DoYouEverWonder]

8. This was a very coordinated attack

on the US base there. I know someone whose in there.

[fishnfla]

2. "strike against themselves"

where are them SCOTUS folks who gave us this chimp? lets send them to Iraq

[dbt]

5. Let's send every bought-and-paid-for Member of Congress

Who voted to surrender their powers to an unelected pResident while we're at it!


dbt

[DeepModem Mom]

11. Chater reporting bombing of Fallujah mosque with 40 "fighters"...

inside. Says, speaking generally, the more casualties, the more support for uprising.

On edit: Also reported Ukranian troops, and approaching U.S. troops, retreat from Kut.