Howard visits his forces in Baghdad; Occupation forces kill 4 students, Truce observed in Falluja
Iraq-Australia, Politics, 4/26/2004

Eye witnesses said that four Iraqi students were killed by indiscriminate bullets fired by the American occupation forces in al-Qanat street, to the east of Baghdad, following a bomb explosion implanted on the road in an American vehicle yesterday.

The witness said " I saw the child laying in the streets with two bullets on his neck and back.. he was carrying his school bag on his back.. 15 minutes later his relative came and took his body." Yesterday in the morning one American vehicle was exposed to an attack within a military convoy roving the streets of Baghdad. Witnesses said that military doctors took two soldiers who were into the vehicle from the site of the accident.

On the other hand, news reports in Musil, to the north of Iraq, said that two Iraqi doctors and killed and ten employees were injured at one hospital when one missile fell whose source was not identified. Two Iraqi policemen were also injured in Musil in an attack by missile shelling.

In a later development, one police officer was killed and one police man was strongly injured in two separate attacks in Karkouk city to the north of Baghdad.

In Baqouba to the north east of Baghdad, news reports said that one explosive went off when one American military procession was running on the main road in Habhab area to the northern east of the city. The occupation forces said that the attack resulted in wounding three soldiers and destroying two armored vehicles, and two soldiers were strongly wounded when unidentified gunmen opened their fire on them so as to be able to escape.

In Ramadi, news reports said that one explosive went off when one American patrol was on one of the roads of the city. The reports said that American soldiers were deployed on the two sides of the road of precaution of other explosives. No reports on casualties in the lines of the American forces.

On the other hand, the US defense department said that it found on Friday the body of the American soldier Olmer Cross ( 40 year old). Cross was killed and his colleague was captured ( Kith Mathew ) ( 20 year old) when their vehicle was ambushed to the west of Baghdad on April 9th. The American forces admitted that Mathew is held as a hostage by his Iraqi captives. The American soldier was shown as a captive by the Iraqi resistance on al-Jazeera TV.

On the conditions in Faluja, the negotiating delegations for the citizens of the city with the occupation forces agreed to fix the cease fire in the city besieged since April 5th.

The agreement states to increase the number of families permitted to return back daily to the city and to run joint patrols between the American forces and the civil defense forces and the Iraqi police, but on the ground that their process to be defined before hand and this is to be valid as from today ( Monday).

The two sides also agreed to remove all non- official armament demonstrations. In case these conditions are implemented, besiege will be lifted from the city.

However, amid tough security measures, the Australian prime minister John Howard visited Iraq to inspect his forces deployed there.

Howard's plane landed yesterday before dawn at Baghdad's airport on a visit lasted for 6 hours in the day when the Australians commemorate the anniversary of their dead in wars.

A government statement said that this visit is a government's recognition of the great sacrifice and contributions the Australian soldiers give there amid difficult conditions.

This is, however, the first visit for Howard since he had sent two thousand soldiers from his country's forces to take part in the invasion of Iraq and replacing them by 850.

Previous Stories:
  One American was killed in Iraq, Bremer brings back thousands of Baathists to their posts   (4/24/2004)
  Occupation warns Faluja: handing over weapons within days, otherwise the attack   (4/23/2004)
  Tehran prepares a file against Saddam   (4/23/2004)
  Talibani in Australia: mass destruction weapons are hidden   (8/23/2003)
  Australia expels all Iraqi diplomats by end of this week   (3/19/2003)
  Australian official resigned in protest of his country's policy towards Iraq   (3/12/2003)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search