Two hostages released in Iraq, preparations to invade Falluja
Iraq, Military, 11/6/2004

News reports said that violent confrontations have been taking place between gunmen and the American forces to the north east of Falluja city.

Witnesses said that the American marines fired artillery shelling against the city in a bombardment described by the people of the city as the most violent since months. Seven shelling were fired at least while the marines are pressuring gunmen before launching a comprehensive attack expected against the gunmen in the city.

The American forces warned the people of Falluja via loudspeakers and publications that it will arrest any man under 45 year old trying to enter or leave the city, while it urged women and children to leave.

People of the city which is situated to the west of Baghdad said that the American forces urged the people to help in detaining what they called terrorists. The American forces blocked the road besieging Falluja.

In Brussels, the Interim Iraqi prime minister Eyad Allawi said that time is beginning to expire for reaching a peaceful settlement to subjugate the city to its control, vowing to liberate it from what he described as terrorists. The UN secretary general Kofi Annan warned the American, British and Iraqi forces from launching the expected attack, noting that attacking the city might increase the anger of the Iraqis and undermine the efforts to have the elections at their due time in January 2005.

One official at the UN said that Annan's warning came in messages he had sent to the American president George W. Bush, the British prime minister Tony Blair and to the Iraqi interim prime minister.

Away from Falluja, the American forces killed several gunmen said to have installed a barrier near al-Tefeih town to the south of Baghdad.

In Samera, one violent explosion took place in the downtown of the city which is situated to the north of Baghdad yesterday evening, and smoke columns were seen coming from an area where bases are installed for the American and Iraqi forces.

Meanwhile, the Georgian ministry of defense said it will increase the number of its forces working in Iraq in response to the request made by Washington and the UN. The ministry gave no figures for this increase. However, the American embassy in Telbeisy said that Georgia will dispatch some 850 soldiers to join the multi-national force in Iraq.

Moreover, kidnappers released one citizen from the Philippine and another from Nipal who were kidnapped in Iraq since several day.

A spokesman for the Nepali foreign ministry said that hostage Yunis Kawari is in a good health condition and that the Saudi trade and contracts company for which he works guaranteed his security. The two hostages together with one American and three Iraqis were kidnapped from the headquarters of the company in the downtown of Baghdad.

Another armed group release two Lebanese hostages who had been held since five weeks. A source at the Lebanese foreign ministry said yesterday that the two hostages Muhammad Jawdat Hussein and Muhammad Qassar returned back to Lebanon yesterday.

Previous Stories:
  Iraq closes a border crossing with Syria   (11/5/2004)
  Allawi meets with European leaders in Brussels   (11/5/2004)
  Falluja bombarded, three British soldiers were killed   (11/5/2004)
  Beheaded bodies in Baghdad, two Iraqis injured in a raid on Falluja   (11/4/2004)

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