Today in Iraq

War News for October 13, 2003 Bring ‘em on: One US soldier killed, one wounded by anti-tank mine near Baiji. Bring ‘em on: Bomb ambush near Tikrit wounds US soldier. Bring ‘em on: US troops in firefight near Baquba. One Iraqi policeman wounded. Bring ‘em on: Four British soldiers wounded in two attacks near Basra. Bring 'em on: IGC Oil Minister escapes assassination attempt in Baghdad. Bring ‘em on: Iraqi provincial governor escapes assassination attempt near Baquba; two Iraqi policemen wounded. Three US soldiers wounded in yesterday’s car bombings in Baghdad. King Abdullah of Jordan says bringing Turkish troops into Iraq is a dumb idea. “Abdullah said Iraq's neighbours were incapable of being ‘honest’ if their military forces were sent in to help the United States conduct peacekeeping operations.” Iraqi Shi’ite group promises to kill foreign peacekeepers. US troops: “In an instant, Private Christopher Hollis faced the choice US soldiers in Iraq often have to make: whether to shoot or risk being shot…” Angry Islamic states tell US to leave Iraq. “The world's Muslims opened a major conference here with calls for the United States to set a timetable for leaving Iraq, fierce condemnation of Israel and anger over their treatment since the September 11 attacks. The three themes were highlighted by speakers at the opening session of a meeting of foreign ministers of the 57-nation Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) preparing for a summit of heads of state on Thursday.” Report from Tikrit: Residents want “to get rid of US thieves.” Report from Hit: Resentment continues. Religion and political fusion in occupied Iraq. “Politics and religion, strictly kept apart during decades of Baath party rule, are interwoven in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq where almost unfettered freedoms and widespread distrust of politicians have thrust clerics on to center stage.” Troop morale: “At the Pentagon, officials say they expect some soldiers not to show up for their flights back to Iraq, and they expect others to be so deeply torn at leaving their families again that they will have trouble coping when they return to the war. But with 130,000 U.S. troops stationed in Iraq in a military occupation that has sometimes been bloody, and with tension mounting among service members and their families over yearlong deployments, military officials said they had little choice but to institute the program in an effort to boost morale.” Army begins internal investigation after 14 Army and Marine suicides in Iraq. Up to one million of Muslim pilgrims gather in Karbala. CPA can’t stop the oilfield sabotage. “Paul Bremer, the United States' proconsul who wears combat boots, is ‘sexing up’ the figures to a point where even the oilmen are shaking their heads. Take Kirkuk. Only when the television cameras capture a blown pipe, flames billowing from its wounds, do the occupation powers report sabotage.” More sabotage reported near Kirkuk. George Soros’ Iraq Revenue Watch faults CPA for lack of transparency. “The lack of transparency and oversight is a serious issue which fuels international skepticism about the way in which the CPA is conducting affairs in Iraq, says IRW. According to the report, one Security Council diplomat ‘predicts that absolutely no money will flow into the DFI from the international community unless there is a sudden change in CPA attitudes and practices regarding transparent management.’ This could have serious repercussions for the forthcoming donor conference in Madrid on 23-24 October.” News from the Chickenhawk Cheerleaders Tour The Cheerleaders tour has been indefinately postponed due to a serious outbreak of food fighting among the major chickenhawks. Reports from the front received at this headquarters indicate that Lieutenant Bush has been conspicuously AWOL from the post of Commander-in-Chief during this skirmishing.