Thursday, January 05, 2006

Eating their own

January 5, 2006

PRESS RELEASE # 6-002 CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, AR RAMADI, IraqA suicide bomb exploded at 10:55 a.m. near the Ramadi Glass and Ceramics Works where screening for Iraqi Police Officers was taking place. 

The extent of the casualties is not known at this time; however, initial reports indicate the suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest targeted the applicants. The four-day Iraqi Police recruitment and screening drive in Ramadi started Jan. 2 and has produced 600 qualified applicants during the first three days of screening. At 10:30 a.m. approximately 1,000 prospective candidates were waiting in line to apply for a position for the new Iraqi Police Force currently being reconstituted in Al Anbar. Those candidates selected will attend 10 weeks of Basic Iraqi Police Training in Baghdad before returning to Ramadi to police its streets.  The applicants must be between the ages of 20 to 35 years of age and successfully complete the screening requirements established by the Minister of the Interior, who governs the Iraqi Police Force.

Commentary

Negotiations have been in progress to form a coalition government of all parties in Iraq. While the details are still unavailable, the fact that this attack took place in Ramadi suggests it's an attempt to keep Sunnis from going into the police force. The number of casualties are unknown as of this posting. However, the good news is that the device wasn't a car bomb and is therefore probably sub ten kilos. The bad news is that the bomber may have been in an applicant line.

A carbomb has gone off at a Shi'ite shrine in Kerbala, according to the The Guardian. Kerbala's governor "Saddamists" and extremist Sunnis.

8 Comments:

Blogger RWE said...

From Fox News:
In Ramadi, police and hospital officials said at least 30 people were killed and 40 injured in a suicide attack on a line of police recruits.

and

The blast near the Imam Hussein shrine in central Karbala, 50 miles south of Baghdad, killed 49 people and injured 52, said Karbala police Col. Razaq al-Taie.
Many pilgrims travel to Karbala on Thursdays to be at the holy site for Friday prayers. One pilgrim, Mohammed Saheb, said he travels to Karbala every Thursday.

Karbala's governor, Aqeel al-Khazraji, blamed "takfiris and Saddamists" for the Karbala attack. The takfiri ideology is followed by extremist Sunni Muslims bent on killing anyone considered to be an infidel, even fellow Muslims who disagree with their doctrine. Al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is a takfiri.

That Army officer a few months back summed it up very well: "There are no better people for us to fight."
In Texas, that translates as "I killed 'em because they needed killin'."

1/05/2006 06:16:00 AM  
Blogger Jeff Kouba said...

Some will see all these recent attacks as a sign of failure, that we should throw up our hands and go home.

These attack really ought to strengthen our resolve, for they remind us of the true nature of our enemy.

1/05/2006 07:53:00 AM  
Blogger davidhamilton said...

Why in the world don't the Iraqi police give their applicants appointment slips? Tell Achmed to come at 9:05, Mohammed at 9:15, and so on. Without a long line of applicants, the target would be less tempting, and any explosions would kill fewer people.

1/05/2006 09:51:00 AM  
Blogger Doug said...

dchamil,
I've been asking that one for 2 years!

1/05/2006 01:51:00 PM  
Blogger Karridine said...

In stark relief: Islamic bankruptcy and poverty of spirit.

NOTHING to grow, create or develop.

NOTHING to offer but 'NOT this...'

What spiritual cripples!

1/05/2006 05:56:00 PM  
Blogger Papa Ray said...

The US forces have told the leadership of Ramadi that they are going to have to choose between controling and helping stop the terrorism in that city or the US and IA will have no choice but to do to Ramadi what they did to Fallujah. So far the city is still being run by the various factions of terrorists.

So, we shall see if the U.S. Military makes good its threat.

Papa Ray
West Texas
USA

1/05/2006 07:39:00 PM  
Blogger genwolf said...

The bombing in Ramadi is terrible and tragic news, but I am surprised that so little has been made about the implications arising from the Bomber's chosen target. Ramadi is overwhelmingly Sunni, and the current heart of the insurgency, and yet it appears that the reason casulaties were so high was that the Police recruitment drive was litterally overwhelemed by applicants. Coming on the heels of the decision by Sunni based parties to contest instead of boycott the election the two peices of evidence clearly signal that general Sunni support for the insurgency is over. The Coalition and Iraqi Security forces need to capitalise on thsi developement urgently, some rewards (esp. Oil revenue) must be made to Sunni's who have rejected the insurgency immediatley. And because it will take 4 to 8 months before the change in Sunni attitudes to tranlate into more Sunni's in the ISF a major commitment must be made to the Sunni's security needs NOW, by troops carefully screened so that they will stengthen the Sunni change of heart rather than cause the Sunnni's to re-think their rejection of the insurgency.

1/07/2006 01:11:00 PM  
Blogger Doug said...

genwolf,
I've heard reports this was the first time the citizens started ratting out terrorists.
Your ideas seem sound to me, not that I know squat about the situation w/ the folks on the ground.
Worth the effort, at least.
...we need some folks besides Islamic True Believers over there.

1/08/2006 01:37:00 PM  

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