DISPATCH FROM DOWN UNDER
Soldiers open fire as troops row worsens
Australian soldiers in Baghdad have opened fire on a suspect car, injuring some of its occupants, amid Federal Opposition concerns for the safety of the 450 new Australian troops being sent to Iraq.
The Australian Defence Force last night issued a statement on the shooting, one of few skirmishes to have involved the security detachment guarding the embassy in Baghdad.
No Australians were injured in the shooting, said to have happened after a vehicle drove towards the soldiers "despite repeated requests to stop".
"Reports indicate that some occupants of the car were injured during the incident. The incident is now being investigated," the statement said. The shooting occurred early yesterday morning Sydney time.
The Opposition Leader, Kim Beazley, has called on the Prime Minister, John Howard, to grant him a military briefing on the deployment of additional forces, saying Labor was concerned about their safety in view of official comments about deficiencies in equipment and readiness.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/02/27/1109439457155.html
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Troops justified in shooting Iraqi woman
Australian troops have shot and wounded a woman in Baghdad but their commander says the soldiers appear to have acted correctly.
The woman was shot in the head and a boy hurt by broken glass when the car they were travelling in failed to stop as it approached a checkpoint in the Iraqi capital on Saturday.
The commander of Australian forces in Iraq, Air Commodore Greg Evans, said a preliminary investigation had found the troops did not overreact.
"We have done a quick assessment of the actions that were carried out by the soldiers and given the circumstances, our first assessment is it looks as if the actions of the soldiers on the ground were appropriate," he told ABC radio.
The male driver of the car ignored repeated directions in Arabic to stop, Air Commodore Evans said.
"When they believed themselves to be in danger from the vehicle (the Australians) engaged it with small arms fire.
"The driver briefly emerged from the vehicle then got back in and reversed away in the opposite direction at high speed and the vehicle then disappeared."
http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Troops-justified-in-shooting-Iraqi-woman/2005/02/28/1109439486279.html
I DO NOT BELIEVE OUR TROOPS ARE EVER JUSTIFIED KILLING WOMEN AND CHILDREN
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Syria hands Saddam's brother to Iraq
February 28, 2005 - 5:49AM
Iraqi officials say Syrian authorities captured Saddam Hussein's half brother in Syria and handed him over to Iraq in an apparent goodwill gesture.
Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, who was also a former adviser suspected of financing insurgents after US troops ousted the former dictator, was captured in Hasakah in north-eastern Syria near the Iraqi border, two senior Iraqi officials told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The officials did not specify when al-Hassan was captured, only saying he was detained following the February 14 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in Beirut, Lebanon.
Syria has come under intense scrutiny following Hariri's death, with many in Lebanon blaming Damascus and Beirut's pro-Syrian government for the killing.
The United States and France also called on Damascus to withdraw 15,000 Syrian troops from Lebanon following Hariri's death.
Washington has long accused Syria of harbouring and aiding former members of Saddam's toppled Baathist regime suspected of involvement in the deadly insurgency against US-led forces in Iraq.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Syria-hands-Saddams-brother-to-Iraqs/2005/02/28/1109439477984.html
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Iran and Russia sign nuclear fuel deal
February 27, 2005
Iran and Russia signed a nuclear fuel agreement on Sunday, paving the way for Iran to get its first reactor up and running.
The two nations signed the agreement despite US objections to Russian support of Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Iranian Vice President Gholamreza Aghazadeh and Alexander Rumyantsev, the head of Russia's Federal Atomic Energy Agency, signed the agreement at the Bushehr nuclear power plant.
The signing was delayed by a day, and came after the two senior officials toured the $US800 million ($A1.02 billion) complex.
"Today, a very important development occurred, and that was the protocol on returning nuclear fuel, which we signed together," Rumyantsev said in a press conference with Aghazadeh.
"In the next few weeks, many Russian technicians will arrive in Bushehr to speed up the assembly operation to finish the plant."
Both officials refused to discuss the details of shipping the nuclear fuel to Iran and the spent fuel back to Russia, but insisted that the agreement respected all regulations concerning nuclear activities.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Iran-and-Russia-sign-nuclear-fuel-deals/2005/02/27/1109439457345.html
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Israel threatens to attack Syria
Israel has attacked Syrian targets in the past and will do so again if it feels this will stop Damascus-based groups from attacking Israeli targets, a senior defence official said.
Deputy Defence Minister Zeev Boim accused Syria of being behind a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv over the weekend.
He said an Israeli attack will "send a message to (Syrian President Bashar) Assad" that he must clamp down on Islamic groups based in Damascus.
Syria denied charges it was behind Friday's suicide bombing in a Tel Aviv nightclub that killed four Israelis and wounded dozens of others.
Israel's Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz also blamed Syria for Friday's bombing, but stopped short of threatening to attack.
Vice-Premier Shimon Peres said the United States is currently leading "an initiative" against Syria, and Israel has to allow it to do so.
Israel has attacked Syrian installations after accusing Damascus-based Islamic groups of masterminding, coordinating and overseeing attacks in Israel
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Israel-threatens-to-attack-Syrias/2005/02/27/1109439448529.html
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TV staff 'receive death threats'
From correspondents in Dubai
February 28, 2005
From: Reuters
ARAB television station Al Arabiya today said its staff had received death threats from Syrian security bodies over an interview with UN chief Kofi Annan in which he urged Syria to withdraw from Lebanon by April.
The Dubai-based service said the threats accompanied criticism of the channel in the Syrian state-run daily Tishreen, which it described as lies aimed at smearing its image.
"Al Arabiya expresses its extreme concern over Tishreen newspaper's method in accusing the television of treachery," it said.
"This was accompanied with threats directed against a number of our colleagues in Beirut."
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12394420-23109,00.html
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Iran 'in black market nuke offer'
From correspondents in Washington
February 28, 2005
From: Agence France-Presse
ASSOCIATES of Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan offered to sell Iran the makings of a nuclear weapons program after a secret meeting in Dubai 18 years ago, The Washington Post reported today.
"The offer is the strongest indication to date that Iran had a nuclear weapons program, but it doesn't prove it completely," a Western diplomat told the paper on condition of anonymity.
Iran provided a copy of the offer last month to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which is investigating Iran's nuclear program.
Iran insists its nuclear activities have been solely geared toward producing nuclear energy.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12394383-23109,00.html
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US marine killed in Iraq
A US marine was killed in action in the violence-plagued province of Babil, the American military said in a statement
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12388650-23109,00.html
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Fear Rules In Russia's Courtrooms:
Judges Who Acquit Forced Off Bench
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A56441-2005Feb26.html
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U.S. Forces Detain Father, Son in '82 Iraqi Massacre:
Hundreds Were Killed In Shiite Muslim Village
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A56471-2005Feb26.html
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U.S. losses in Afghanistan, Iraq wars cost $570 million
Senior army officials estimated that replacing military hardware lost in U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will cost the military nearly 570 million dollars this year.
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/middle_east_full_story.asp?service_id=7321
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British troops to face investigation over crimes in Iraq
Leaked documents from the British MoD show that more than 50 British troops are facing prosecution for murder, manslaughter, assult and other crimes in Iraq
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/middle_east_full_story.asp?service_id=7262
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US troops killed in Iraq attack
Three US troops have been killed and eight others injured in an explosion north of Baghdad, US military officials have said.
Witnesses said soldiers were attacked in Tarmiyah, about 35km (20 miles) north-east of the capital.
US officials said the soldiers were on a foot patrol when they were hit by the blast, caused by an improvised device.
Iraq's government meanwhile says it has caught a top aide to wanted al-Qaeda militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4297951.stm
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Drugs stockpiled as bird flu fears rise
Emergency quarantine measures planned after warning of the risk of pandemic of deadly avian virus
Millions of doses of drugs to combat bird flu are to be stockpiled by the government amid fears that the virus could afflict up to one in four Britons in the event of a pandemic.
The move follows warnings from the World Health Organisation of the risk of avian flu jumping the species barrier from birds, then spreading worldwide.
Professor Sir Liam Donald son, the chief medical officer, will this week outline an emergency plan to tackle a potential future flu outbreak.
He is also expected to detail emergency quarantine measures which could be imposed in the event of a serious outbreak - such as closing theatres, cinemas or schools - and protocols for who would be first in line to get the drug. Although it is expected that health professionals would be top priority, the next could depend on the strain of flu, with some more likely to affect children and others more lethal to the elderly.
'If the population became susceptible, it's likely to continue to spread despite people's best efforts - it's likely to spread across the globe,' said a Department of Health source.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1426463,00.html
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Mass killer held after 30 years of terror
A manhunt for a serial killer who terrorised the Kansas city of Wichita for more than quarter of a century ended has been caught by police
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1426503,00.html
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Zarqawi remains elusive despite govt optimism
HADITHA: Iraq's government said overnight it was closing in on Abu Musab al-Zarqawi but out in the western desert, where he is rumoured to be hiding, Marines said the Jordanian militant remained as elusive as ever.
"There is no pinpoint accuracy as to where he's at, just rumours," said Lieutenant-Colonel Greg Stevens after his US Marines had completed a sweep of palm and orange groves along the Euphrates river in search of insurgents.
"He's a ghost out there. He has nine lives, he's very slippery and very well protected and he certainly isn't stupid. "
Iraq's minister of state for national security, Kassim Daoud, said on Saturday the government was "at the closest point to Zarqawi", the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq and the man who has claimed responsibility for many of the country's worst attacks.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3200955a12,00.html
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A Granite Falls mother who thought her obligation to the Army was over tries to avoid a tour of duty in Iraq.
Called back to serve
A Granite Falls woman who was released from the Army Reserve after only a few months in uniform was shocked by a recent military mailgram telling her to report for duty next month for Operation Iraqi Freedom.
"I thought I was discharged and done," said Andrea DeGeus.
It wasn't so simple.
DeGeus' name was transferred into the Individual Ready Reserve, an administrative roster the Army plucks soldiers from during times of war.
DeGeus, 21, is now struggling to get her Army orders changed. Her biggest worry is 14 months old.
"My daughter. That's everything," DeGeus said, referring to Abby, her toddler.
http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/05/02/27/100loc_serve001.cfm
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Bombing in Hilla kills at least 125
Police recruits targeted in suicide attack
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A suicide car bomber Monday morning drove into a crowd of Iraqis outside a government medical office in Hilla, killing at least 125 and wounding up to 200 others, Iraqi government and health officials said.
Iraqi police recruits were lining up outside the building to be given physicals, officials said.
Hilla is located about 55 miles south of Baghdad.
A second car bomb exploded about 15 miles to the north in Musayyib. Iraq's Interior Ministry said it had reports of wounded but no other details.
The Hilla and Musayyib attacks come a day after eight people were killed and at least two injured when a bomb exploded inside a municipal building in northern Iraq, multinational forces officials said.
The blast, an attack by suspected insurgents, happened in Hamam al-Alil, a town about 20 kilometers (12 miles) southeast of Mosul. The building housed different government departments.
The injured were taken to a hospital, military officials said.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Journalist mourned
Raiedah Mohammed Wazan, a 40-year-old television anchorwoman in Ninevah province, was found shot to death Friday in the al-Wahda neighborhood in eastern Mosul, her husband said.
Wazan was buried Friday, and family members kept a mourning service on Saturday private for fear of attacks.
Wazan was abducted a week ago by unknown gunmen. She was found shot in the forehead and chest.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Other developments
A U.S. soldier with Task Force Baghdad died Sunday night after being shot at a traffic checkpoint in southern Baghdad, a U.S. military statement said. The incident is under investigation. U.S. military officials announced on Sunday the deaths of two other American soldiers and a Marine, all three killed on Saturday. The soldiers died in an insurgent attack in eastern Baghdad and the Marine was killed in Babil province. The deaths bring the number of U.S. troops killed in the Iraq war to 1,495, including 1,142 killed in hostile action, according to the U.S. military.
An Iraqi oil pipeline was sabotaged in Dibis, about 31 miles (50 kilometers) north of Kirkuk, authorities said Sunday. A Kirkuk police source told CNN a bomb was planted and damaged the pipeline, which is used for pumping crude oil from the Dibis oil field to the Kirkuk refinery.
Seven Iraqis were wounded Sunday when a bomb exploded inside a town building in Hamam al-Alil, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) southeast of Mosul, Iraqi police said. The building houses different government departments.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Meanwhile,
11 people, including four women, a police officer and two government workers, have been kidnapped within the past several days on a road between two towns south of Baghdad, Iraqi police said Sunday.
The kidnapped people were apparently abducted on a road between Latifiya and Mahmoudiya, as they were returning to Karbala, according to a source from Baghdad police.
Since the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq began, Iraqis and foreigners have been kidnapped and killed in the two towns while traveling to and from the cities south of Baghdad.
The kidnappings announced Sunday are believed to be the first since the Iraqi elections.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Australian soldiers in Baghdad have opened fire on a suspect car, injuring some of its occupants, amid Federal Opposition concerns for the safety of the 450 new Australian troops being sent to Iraq.
The Australian Defence Force last night issued a statement on the shooting, one of few skirmishes to have involved the security detachment guarding the embassy in Baghdad.
No Australians were injured in the shooting, said to have happened after a vehicle drove towards the soldiers "despite repeated requests to stop".
"Reports indicate that some occupants of the car were injured during the incident. The incident is now being investigated," the statement said. The shooting occurred early yesterday morning Sydney time.
The Opposition Leader, Kim Beazley, has called on the Prime Minister, John Howard, to grant him a military briefing on the deployment of additional forces, saying Labor was concerned about their safety in view of official comments about deficiencies in equipment and readiness.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/02/27/1109439457155.html
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Troops justified in shooting Iraqi woman
Australian troops have shot and wounded a woman in Baghdad but their commander says the soldiers appear to have acted correctly.
The woman was shot in the head and a boy hurt by broken glass when the car they were travelling in failed to stop as it approached a checkpoint in the Iraqi capital on Saturday.
The commander of Australian forces in Iraq, Air Commodore Greg Evans, said a preliminary investigation had found the troops did not overreact.
"We have done a quick assessment of the actions that were carried out by the soldiers and given the circumstances, our first assessment is it looks as if the actions of the soldiers on the ground were appropriate," he told ABC radio.
The male driver of the car ignored repeated directions in Arabic to stop, Air Commodore Evans said.
"When they believed themselves to be in danger from the vehicle (the Australians) engaged it with small arms fire.
"The driver briefly emerged from the vehicle then got back in and reversed away in the opposite direction at high speed and the vehicle then disappeared."
http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Troops-justified-in-shooting-Iraqi-woman/2005/02/28/1109439486279.html
I DO NOT BELIEVE OUR TROOPS ARE EVER JUSTIFIED KILLING WOMEN AND CHILDREN
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Syria hands Saddam's brother to Iraq
February 28, 2005 - 5:49AM
Iraqi officials say Syrian authorities captured Saddam Hussein's half brother in Syria and handed him over to Iraq in an apparent goodwill gesture.
Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, who was also a former adviser suspected of financing insurgents after US troops ousted the former dictator, was captured in Hasakah in north-eastern Syria near the Iraqi border, two senior Iraqi officials told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The officials did not specify when al-Hassan was captured, only saying he was detained following the February 14 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in Beirut, Lebanon.
Syria has come under intense scrutiny following Hariri's death, with many in Lebanon blaming Damascus and Beirut's pro-Syrian government for the killing.
The United States and France also called on Damascus to withdraw 15,000 Syrian troops from Lebanon following Hariri's death.
Washington has long accused Syria of harbouring and aiding former members of Saddam's toppled Baathist regime suspected of involvement in the deadly insurgency against US-led forces in Iraq.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Syria-hands-Saddams-brother-to-Iraqs/2005/02/28/1109439477984.html
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Iran and Russia sign nuclear fuel deal
February 27, 2005
Iran and Russia signed a nuclear fuel agreement on Sunday, paving the way for Iran to get its first reactor up and running.
The two nations signed the agreement despite US objections to Russian support of Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Iranian Vice President Gholamreza Aghazadeh and Alexander Rumyantsev, the head of Russia's Federal Atomic Energy Agency, signed the agreement at the Bushehr nuclear power plant.
The signing was delayed by a day, and came after the two senior officials toured the $US800 million ($A1.02 billion) complex.
"Today, a very important development occurred, and that was the protocol on returning nuclear fuel, which we signed together," Rumyantsev said in a press conference with Aghazadeh.
"In the next few weeks, many Russian technicians will arrive in Bushehr to speed up the assembly operation to finish the plant."
Both officials refused to discuss the details of shipping the nuclear fuel to Iran and the spent fuel back to Russia, but insisted that the agreement respected all regulations concerning nuclear activities.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Iran-and-Russia-sign-nuclear-fuel-deals/2005/02/27/1109439457345.html
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Israel threatens to attack Syria
Israel has attacked Syrian targets in the past and will do so again if it feels this will stop Damascus-based groups from attacking Israeli targets, a senior defence official said.
Deputy Defence Minister Zeev Boim accused Syria of being behind a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv over the weekend.
He said an Israeli attack will "send a message to (Syrian President Bashar) Assad" that he must clamp down on Islamic groups based in Damascus.
Syria denied charges it was behind Friday's suicide bombing in a Tel Aviv nightclub that killed four Israelis and wounded dozens of others.
Israel's Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz also blamed Syria for Friday's bombing, but stopped short of threatening to attack.
Vice-Premier Shimon Peres said the United States is currently leading "an initiative" against Syria, and Israel has to allow it to do so.
Israel has attacked Syrian installations after accusing Damascus-based Islamic groups of masterminding, coordinating and overseeing attacks in Israel
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Israel-threatens-to-attack-Syrias/2005/02/27/1109439448529.html
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TV staff 'receive death threats'
From correspondents in Dubai
February 28, 2005
From: Reuters
ARAB television station Al Arabiya today said its staff had received death threats from Syrian security bodies over an interview with UN chief Kofi Annan in which he urged Syria to withdraw from Lebanon by April.
The Dubai-based service said the threats accompanied criticism of the channel in the Syrian state-run daily Tishreen, which it described as lies aimed at smearing its image.
"Al Arabiya expresses its extreme concern over Tishreen newspaper's method in accusing the television of treachery," it said.
"This was accompanied with threats directed against a number of our colleagues in Beirut."
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12394420-23109,00.html
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Iran 'in black market nuke offer'
From correspondents in Washington
February 28, 2005
From: Agence France-Presse
ASSOCIATES of Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan offered to sell Iran the makings of a nuclear weapons program after a secret meeting in Dubai 18 years ago, The Washington Post reported today.
"The offer is the strongest indication to date that Iran had a nuclear weapons program, but it doesn't prove it completely," a Western diplomat told the paper on condition of anonymity.
Iran provided a copy of the offer last month to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which is investigating Iran's nuclear program.
Iran insists its nuclear activities have been solely geared toward producing nuclear energy.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12394383-23109,00.html
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US marine killed in Iraq
A US marine was killed in action in the violence-plagued province of Babil, the American military said in a statement
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12388650-23109,00.html
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Fear Rules In Russia's Courtrooms:
Judges Who Acquit Forced Off Bench
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A56441-2005Feb26.html
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U.S. Forces Detain Father, Son in '82 Iraqi Massacre:
Hundreds Were Killed In Shiite Muslim Village
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A56471-2005Feb26.html
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U.S. losses in Afghanistan, Iraq wars cost $570 million
Senior army officials estimated that replacing military hardware lost in U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will cost the military nearly 570 million dollars this year.
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/middle_east_full_story.asp?service_id=7321
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British troops to face investigation over crimes in Iraq
Leaked documents from the British MoD show that more than 50 British troops are facing prosecution for murder, manslaughter, assult and other crimes in Iraq
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/middle_east_full_story.asp?service_id=7262
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
US troops killed in Iraq attack
Three US troops have been killed and eight others injured in an explosion north of Baghdad, US military officials have said.
Witnesses said soldiers were attacked in Tarmiyah, about 35km (20 miles) north-east of the capital.
US officials said the soldiers were on a foot patrol when they were hit by the blast, caused by an improvised device.
Iraq's government meanwhile says it has caught a top aide to wanted al-Qaeda militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4297951.stm
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Drugs stockpiled as bird flu fears rise
Emergency quarantine measures planned after warning of the risk of pandemic of deadly avian virus
Millions of doses of drugs to combat bird flu are to be stockpiled by the government amid fears that the virus could afflict up to one in four Britons in the event of a pandemic.
The move follows warnings from the World Health Organisation of the risk of avian flu jumping the species barrier from birds, then spreading worldwide.
Professor Sir Liam Donald son, the chief medical officer, will this week outline an emergency plan to tackle a potential future flu outbreak.
He is also expected to detail emergency quarantine measures which could be imposed in the event of a serious outbreak - such as closing theatres, cinemas or schools - and protocols for who would be first in line to get the drug. Although it is expected that health professionals would be top priority, the next could depend on the strain of flu, with some more likely to affect children and others more lethal to the elderly.
'If the population became susceptible, it's likely to continue to spread despite people's best efforts - it's likely to spread across the globe,' said a Department of Health source.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,1426463,00.html
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Mass killer held after 30 years of terror
A manhunt for a serial killer who terrorised the Kansas city of Wichita for more than quarter of a century ended has been caught by police
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1426503,00.html
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Zarqawi remains elusive despite govt optimism
HADITHA: Iraq's government said overnight it was closing in on Abu Musab al-Zarqawi but out in the western desert, where he is rumoured to be hiding, Marines said the Jordanian militant remained as elusive as ever.
"There is no pinpoint accuracy as to where he's at, just rumours," said Lieutenant-Colonel Greg Stevens after his US Marines had completed a sweep of palm and orange groves along the Euphrates river in search of insurgents.
"He's a ghost out there. He has nine lives, he's very slippery and very well protected and he certainly isn't stupid. "
Iraq's minister of state for national security, Kassim Daoud, said on Saturday the government was "at the closest point to Zarqawi", the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq and the man who has claimed responsibility for many of the country's worst attacks.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3200955a12,00.html
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A Granite Falls mother who thought her obligation to the Army was over tries to avoid a tour of duty in Iraq.
Called back to serve
A Granite Falls woman who was released from the Army Reserve after only a few months in uniform was shocked by a recent military mailgram telling her to report for duty next month for Operation Iraqi Freedom.
"I thought I was discharged and done," said Andrea DeGeus.
It wasn't so simple.
DeGeus' name was transferred into the Individual Ready Reserve, an administrative roster the Army plucks soldiers from during times of war.
DeGeus, 21, is now struggling to get her Army orders changed. Her biggest worry is 14 months old.
"My daughter. That's everything," DeGeus said, referring to Abby, her toddler.
http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/05/02/27/100loc_serve001.cfm
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Bombing in Hilla kills at least 125
Police recruits targeted in suicide attack
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A suicide car bomber Monday morning drove into a crowd of Iraqis outside a government medical office in Hilla, killing at least 125 and wounding up to 200 others, Iraqi government and health officials said.
Iraqi police recruits were lining up outside the building to be given physicals, officials said.
Hilla is located about 55 miles south of Baghdad.
A second car bomb exploded about 15 miles to the north in Musayyib. Iraq's Interior Ministry said it had reports of wounded but no other details.
The Hilla and Musayyib attacks come a day after eight people were killed and at least two injured when a bomb exploded inside a municipal building in northern Iraq, multinational forces officials said.
The blast, an attack by suspected insurgents, happened in Hamam al-Alil, a town about 20 kilometers (12 miles) southeast of Mosul. The building housed different government departments.
The injured were taken to a hospital, military officials said.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Journalist mourned
Raiedah Mohammed Wazan, a 40-year-old television anchorwoman in Ninevah province, was found shot to death Friday in the al-Wahda neighborhood in eastern Mosul, her husband said.
Wazan was buried Friday, and family members kept a mourning service on Saturday private for fear of attacks.
Wazan was abducted a week ago by unknown gunmen. She was found shot in the forehead and chest.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Other developments
A U.S. soldier with Task Force Baghdad died Sunday night after being shot at a traffic checkpoint in southern Baghdad, a U.S. military statement said. The incident is under investigation. U.S. military officials announced on Sunday the deaths of two other American soldiers and a Marine, all three killed on Saturday. The soldiers died in an insurgent attack in eastern Baghdad and the Marine was killed in Babil province. The deaths bring the number of U.S. troops killed in the Iraq war to 1,495, including 1,142 killed in hostile action, according to the U.S. military.
An Iraqi oil pipeline was sabotaged in Dibis, about 31 miles (50 kilometers) north of Kirkuk, authorities said Sunday. A Kirkuk police source told CNN a bomb was planted and damaged the pipeline, which is used for pumping crude oil from the Dibis oil field to the Kirkuk refinery.
Seven Iraqis were wounded Sunday when a bomb exploded inside a town building in Hamam al-Alil, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) southeast of Mosul, Iraqi police said. The building houses different government departments.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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Meanwhile,
11 people, including four women, a police officer and two government workers, have been kidnapped within the past several days on a road between two towns south of Baghdad, Iraqi police said Sunday.
The kidnapped people were apparently abducted on a road between Latifiya and Mahmoudiya, as they were returning to Karbala, according to a source from Baghdad police.
Since the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq began, Iraqis and foreigners have been kidnapped and killed in the two towns while traveling to and from the cities south of Baghdad.
The kidnappings announced Sunday are believed to be the first since the Iraqi elections.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/28/iraq.main/index.html
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posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 7:18 AM
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