Today in Iraq

War News for Saturday, December 18, 2004 Bring ‘em on: Four American security contractors wounded by car bomb near Beiji. Bring ‘em on: One Iraqi killed, two wounded in shooting at US checkpoint near Kirkuk. Bring ‘em on: Four Iraqis killed in US air strikes near Fallujah. Bring ‘em on: Baghdad airport mortared. Bring ‘em on: One Iraqi police officer killed in bomb attack in Tikrit. Bring ‘em on: Oil pipeline ablaze near Baghdad. Bring ‘em on: Two killed, eight wounded in mortar attacks on three election offices in Kirkuk and Dujail. Bring ‘em on: One Iraqi civilian killed, eight wounded in roadside bomb attack on US convoy in Mosul. Bring ‘em on: One ING soldier killed, three wounded in checkpoint attack near Dukkak. Bring ‘em on: US troops ambushed in Mosul. Bring ‘em on: Insurgents execute two Iraqis near Beiji. Bring ‘em on: Pipeline sabotaged near Beiji. Freedom on the march. “The CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency and the State Department warned President Bush this week that the United States and its Iraqi allies are not winning the battle against Iraqi insurgents who are trying to derail the country's Jan. 30 elections, according to administration officials.” Power shortages. “As if the daily struggle to dodge bullets and bombings is not enough, many Iraqis now face a freezing winter shivering by candlelight as persistent attacks keep the power out for more than 12 hours a day. ‘Saddam Hussein used to cut off the electricity for a couple of hours a day and we'd complain,’ said Fadia Karim, 33. ‘Now there's no power for hours and hours every day. There's no fuel for the generators, no kerosene for the heaters. People are beyond complaining. Things are just getting worse.’” US forgives 4.1 billion in Iraqi debt. Deserter. “The U.S. Navy decided that Pablo Paredes, the soldier of a Puerto Rican mother and an Ecuadorean father who refused to participate in the war in Iraq, is a deserter. It will seek his arrest, however he is expected to turn himself in to authorities on Friday. Lt. Jonathan Groveman, spokesman for the Southeastern Region of the Navy in San Diego, Calif., said Paredes, 23, was declared a deserter because he had announced his intentions to not fight in Iraq.” Commentary Opinion: “It's time that the men and women risking their lives in Iraq were given the respect they deserve. Not another dollar should be spent on antiquated Cold War weapons systems until every soldier has the very best in safety gear. And we should be looking at other innovative ways to armor our troops. Eliminating the tax loophole that allows Americans to write off the purchase of a Humvee would be a good start, with the money being diverted to our soldiers in the field. On American highways, Humvees are nothing but material trophies, despoiling the environment and providing their owners with a tax break. In Iraq where Humvees are critical, the government has yet to find a way to properly outfit the vehicles. Is there a better example of bad public policy?” Opinion: “The Bush administration has appropriated $34.3 billion on a theoretical missile defense system -- which proved again this week to be an expensive dud in its first test in two years, when the "kill vehicle" never got off the ground to intercept the target missile carrying a mock warhead -- but has been able up to now, according to congressional budget authorities, to spend just $2 billion to armor the vehicles of Americans under fire.” Casualty Reports Local story: New York soldier killed in Iraq. Local story: Louisiana soldier wounded in Iraq. Local story: Georgia Marine wounded in Iraq. Local story: Michigan Marine wounded in Iraq. Local story: Illinois Marine wounded in Iraq.