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8
U.S. Soldiers Killed In West Baghdad: Al-Arabiya
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One
of the U.S. convoy's vehicles in flames
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KHALDIYAH,
Iraq, September 18 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Eight U.S.
soldiers were reportedly killed Thursday, September 18, in an attack on
an American convoy in the town of Khaldiyah, west of Baghdad, while
other U.S. forces took more fire across the war-scarred country, the
Dubai-based Al-Arabiya satellite channel said.
Eyewitnesses
said that a bomb exploded underneath an American military vehicle that
caught fire with about 10 soldiers inside.
The
rest of the convoy was pelted with rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) as
it struggled to make its way to a nearby U.S. base, reported Agence
France-Presse (AFP).
Local
resident Mahmmoud Ali, 45, said he saw eight badly burned soldiers taken
from the bombed vehicle.
He
said the convoy was hit while traveling through the town en route from
Fallujah to Ramadi, two towns west of the capital.
"A
bomb exploded underneath a troop transport. It caught fire. The
remainder of the convoy tried to continue and was hit by
rocket-propelled grenades 500 meters (yards) away," he said.
Yussif
Ali, who recalled seeing only four bodies, added that the Americans
again cut off the road and confirmed that the other vehicles that
continued on their way came under more RPG fire four kilometers (2.5
miles) away.
A
deafening explosion was heard from the U.S. base outside the town, where
large stocks of munitions are stored. But there was no immediate word on
the cause or the consequences.
Two
Iraqi civilians were reportedly hurt in the attacks, witnesses said,
though there was no word on how they were wounded.
An
American helicopter gunship circled the area, apparently poised to
evacuate the wounded but did not land, the witnesses said.
The
U.S. military in Baghdad said it had no immediate report of the
incident.
The
attack came amid high tensions high in the region, with U.S. troops shooting
dead a teenager late Wednesday, September 17, in Fallujah.
On
Saturday, September 13, the U.S. military issued an ‘apology’ after
nine security guards from Fallujah were killed
the previous day when U.S. troops opened fire as the guards were chasing
thieves.
Grenade,
Rocket Attacks
Meanwhile
in Mosul, U.S. troops came under a series of grenade and rocket
attack, witnesses said Thursday.
They
gave no figures for casualties in the attacks that started shortly
before midnight and targeted U.S. soldiers at the entrance to Mosul, in
front of a restaurant and at a hotel here.
The
U.S. military confirmed rockets hit the Civil Military Operations Center
(CMOC) office in Mosul damaging some vehicles and leaving two people
slightly wounded. It did not confirm the other attacks.
A
military spokesman also said a soldier of the 4th Infantry Division was
wounded Wednesday by a bomb in the town of Taji, 10 kilometers (six
miles) north of Baghdad. He did not give any details.
Residents
of Mosul, 400 kilometers (250 miles) northwest of Baghdad, said it was
the first time they had seen such a spate of closely timed attacks on
U.S. forces since the Americans invaded the country in April.
A
nine-vehicle U.S. convoy was attacked with grenades and rockets about
11:30 am (0730 GMT) at the southern entrance to Mosul, local resident
Mohammad Yunes, 45, told AFP.
He
said U.S. forces quickly sealed off the area and brought in
reinforcements.
Shortly
before, attackers hurled a grenade at an American military vehicle
stopped in front of a restaurant where some soldiers were eating near
Mosul University, said Ibrahim Taqqa, an engineer. He said U.S. troops
quickly surrounded the university.
Attackers
using grenades and RPGs targeted a local hotel used by American troops
shortly before midnight, staff at the hotel told AFP. They said some
rooms were destroyed but provided no further details.
Two
Iraqi policemen were also found dead, their throats slit, on the
sidewalk in front of the local U.S.-supported television station around
midnight, according to an employee of the station, Samir Abed Rabbo, 50.
American
Held
In
another development, U.S. troops in Iraq detained an American on
suspicion of attacking the U.S.-led forces but later released him, a top
U.S. general said Thursday while denying any Americans are currently in
custody.
Lieutenant
General Ricardo Sanchez was responding to reports that six prisoners
claiming American citizenship and two saying they were Britons were
among the thousands of people held in Iraq as "security
detainees."
"We
currently have no American under arrest in our detention
facilities," he told a news conference. "Have we detained
Americans in the past? Yes."
He
said an American had been held in the "post-major combat
phase," referring to the period since May 1 when President George
W. Bush declared major operations in Iraq over.
"He
was detained on suspicion of having conducted operations against
coalition forces," Sanchez said, noting that the prisoner was
released after questioning and no charges were filed.
On
Tuesday, September 16, Brigadier General Janis Karpinski said at the
main Iraqi prison west of Baghdad that six inmates held as security
detainees were claiming to be Americans and two said they were British.
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