Lynda e-mails to note Salih Saif Aldin, Bassam Sebti, and Fred Barbash's "Four Soldiers Killed in Iraqi Insurgent Attack: Escalation in Violence Expected Ahead of Deadline for New Constitution" (Washington Post):
Four U.S. soldiers were killed and six were wounded late Tuesday when insurgents attacked an Army patrol near the northern town of Baiji, the military announced Wednesday.
The killings brought to nine the number of U.S. service members whose deaths have been announced since Saturday while 38 have been killed in the month of August.
The military provided no details of the latest attack.
Bassam Mroue's "Five U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq Attacks: At Least 32 Troops Have Died in August" (Associated Press):
Four U.S. soldiers were killed and six others wounded Tuesday when insurgents attacked their patrol in the northern city of Beiji. One U.S. soldier died in a suicide car bomb attack in Baghdad, officials said.
The 10 Task Force Liberty soldiers were on patrol when they came under attack late Tuesday in Beiji, 155 miles north of Baghdad, a military statement said Wednesday.
A suicide car bomber struck a U.S. convoy waiting at an intersection Tuesday in Baghdad, killing seven people - including one American soldier - and wounding more than 90. More than a dozen others died in scattered attacks across the capital.
Also, a U.S. Marine assigned to the 2nd Marine Division was killed Monday by small-arms fire in Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad, the U.S. military said. The deaths brought the number of U.S. service members killed in Iraq this month to at least 32.
Violence raged as Iraqi political leaders showed little sign of compromise less than a week before a deadline for approving a new constitution. Faction leaders conferred for about four hours Tuesday night hoping to overcome their differences and produce a charter by Monday.
[. . .]
· [*] The mayor of Baghdad, Alaa al-Timimi, was fired and responsibility for managing the city transferred to the provincial governor, government spokesman Laith Kubba said. He refused to say why the provincial council sacked the mayor.
· [*] The mayor of Samawah, a southern Shiite city gripped by riots over lack of municipal services, resigned under pressure. The decision came Monday during a visit by delegates sent by the prime minister, according to Sheik Mohannad al-Gharrawi.
Gareth e-mails to note "Baghdad mayor 'ousted by gunmen'" (BBC):
Baghdad's mayor has been sacked by the Iraqi government, in circumstances that he has described as "dangerous" and "undemocratic".
A government spokesman said Alaa al-Tamimi was fired on Monday, although he refused to elaborate further.
However, Mr Tamimi himself said 120 gunmen stormed his office and installed the provincial governor in his place.
In the United States, Cindy Sheehan continues her brave vigil. The Lonestar Iconoclast is posting regular updates on Cindy Sheehan.
Here's an excerpt of the latest, W. Leon Smith's "Bill Mitchell, Whose Son Was Killed Same Day As Cindy's,Flies To Texas From California To Offer Support:"
A distinct calm permeated the grounds of Camp Casey as the midnight hour slipped into Wednesday morning. Crickets sang amid the backdrop of trees on one side, as lights from Waco in the far distance on the opposite side outlined the open prairie in between.
The camp was dark, save the predictable flicker of a thunderhead in the south and the occasional light-up of a cell phone that doubled as a flashlight for a few human night owls seeking a place to get comfortable.
An intermittent sweep of drizzle kept the air muggy, but cool. A few tents and numerous graffiti-scribbled signs were silhouetted as they jutted up from the grass.
In all, about 15 vehicles had made their way to the sanctuary in the ditch where fate decreed an icon of peace to take her stand.
Cindy Sheehan was seated in a lawn chair next to a friend, who had come to Crawford to lend support for her cause. He, too, had felt the pangs of losing a child to a war he didn't believe in.
It had been a long day for Sheehan, whose voice had softened in the wake of seemingly endless interviews. With worldwide attention focused on her quest to expose the war in Iraq as ignoble, the press had become a constant companion.
But she was tired and it was late; and the unknowns of tomorrow would require strength, so she hugged her friend good-night and wandered toward her tent.
Her friend was weary, too, for California is a long way from Texas and the trip can be exhausting, but he agreed to visit awhile with the publisher of The Lone Star Iconoclast to explain his interest in supporting Cindy.
Bill Mitchell, of Atascadero, Calif.-- a city that lies along the central coast halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco -- said that he came to Crawford to support Cindy Sheehan, with whom he holds a special bond.
Click here to continue reading (Smith, publisher of the paper, interviews Mitchell).
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
