Today in Iraq

War News for December 27, 2003 Bring 'em on: One US soldier killed, one wounded in roadside bomb ambush near Ad-Dulleieya. Bring 'em on: US patrol ambushed with RPG and small arms fire in Mosul. Four Iraqis killed. Bring 'em on: Five US soldiers wounded in convoy ambush near Baghdad. Bring 'em on: Iraqi police station under missile attack near Karbala. Bring 'em on: Insurgents bomb fuel depot near Baghdad. Bring 'em on: One US soldier wounded in convoy ambush near Habaniyah. Bring 'em on: Gunfight and grenades at funereal of slain tribal chief in Mosul. (Last paragraph.) Bring 'em on: Two Iraqi insurgents killed by premature bomb explosion near Beiji. Bring 'em on: Car bomb kills four, wounds 60 Iraqis at Karbala university campus. Bring 'em on: Twenty Coalition casualties reported in coordinated mortar and small arms attacks at two Coalition installations in Karbala. Bring 'em on: Four Bulgarian soldiers killed in mortar attack in southern Iraq. Bring 'em on: Five US soldiers wounded by car bomb in Karbala. CENTCOM reports one US soldier killed in Baghdad vehicle accident. CENTCOM changes default display on casualty page to reflect only the last day's casualties. Iraqi interim foreign minister wants early sovereignty; Sunni cleric vows to increase resistance. Analysis: The costs and consequences of Bush's folly. Home of suspected insurgent destroyed in Khaldiyah. Insurgents find safe haven among an angry Iraqi population. When did the US Army start decorating journalists? Evangelical fundies bring the Bible to Iraq. "Organising in secrecy, and emphasising their humanitarian aid work, Christian groups are pouring into the country, which is 97 per cent Muslim, bearing Arabic Bibles, videos and religious tracts designed to 'save' Muslims from their 'false' religion…The US Agency for International Development has said that the government cannot rein in private charities. 'Imagine what the US Congress would say to us,' said a spokesman in April." Elmer Gantry and F-16 strikes. Now that's what I call Bible-thumping! Commentary Annual Cheers and Jeers. "CHEERS, of course, to Time Magazine's person of the year - the U.S. soldier. .. JEERS, JEERS and more JEERS to the Bush administration, though, for: Misleading the public about supposed imminent danger posed by Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. ... Not just disagreeing with traditional allies, especially France and Germany, but being downright antagonistic for their reluctance to invade Iraq. ... Underestimating the resources needed to rebuild Iraq's infrastructure. ... Suggesting that any war critics were by definition unpatriotic. ... Dropping the ball in rebuilding Afghanistan and reforming its government." Editorial: America no safer today than one year ago. "President Bush began 2003 determined to have the U.S. invade Iraq. And, despite the best efforts of tens of millions of people around the planet, he got his wish…By removing Saddam without a plan for what would come after his grip on the country was loosened, the Bush administration destabilized a country that sits at the crossroads of the Middle East. The administration also created the very real prospect that Iraq will now become a haven for remnants of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida and related terrorist networks." Casualty Reports Local story: Arizona soldier killed in Iraq. Local story: Ohio soldier killed in Iraq. Local story: Colorado soldier dies in Iraq. Local story: Florida soldier wounded in Iraq.