Saturday, 20 January 2007.

·       Iraqi Resistance car bomber blasts checkpoint manned by group of US Marines in al-Qa’im Saturday evening.

·       US troops in ar-Ramadi kill 16-year-old boy for spitting on them Saturday.

·       Half-hour gun battle in al-Fallujah Friday leaves two US troops reported dead.

·       US soldier reported killed when Resistance bomb disables Bradley armored vehicle near ad-Dulu'iyah.

·       Resistance shoots down US helicopter near Buhriz; US admits 13 troops dead.

·       British soldier reported killed in Resistance bomb attack in al-Basrah Saturday.

Al-Anbar Province.

Al-Qa’im.

Iraqi Resistance car bomber blasts checkpoint manned by group of US Marines in al-Qa’im Saturday evening.

In a dispatch posted at 9:42pm Makkah time Saturday night, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that a short while earlier an Iraqi Resistance fida’i fighter had driven an explosives-laden car into a checkpoint where a group of Marines were gathered in the western part of the city of al-Qa’im on the Euphrates River near the Syrian border in western Iraq.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that a Resistance fighter attacked the checkpoint and blew up.  The correspondent reported that as of the time of writing the checkpoint was ablaze and two US military vehicles parked there were also on fire.

No details on the nature or extent of US casualties were available, except that US military helicopters landed at the site of the checkpoint after the explosion and a large number of military vehicles also showed up.  The Americans closed the road to al-Qa’im and the nearby towns of Sa'dah and ar-Rummanah and also closed the dirt road that leads to the village of Makr adh-Dhib.

Al-Hadithah.

Resistance carries out second mortar strike on US headquarters in al-Hadithah Saturday morning.

In a dispatch posted at 3:19pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that Iraqi Resistance forces fired a barrage of four 82mm mortar shells into the US headquarters set up in the former al-Hadithah Department of Education building on Saturday morning.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses in the city as saying that the explosions were so powerful that they could be heard throughout the city and plumes of smoke and dust were seen rising over the facility.

Resistance bombards US headquarters in al-Hadithah with heavy mortar barrage Friday.

In a dispatch posted at 2:44pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that Iraqi Resistance forces fired a barrage of heavy 120mm mortar rounds into the US base in al-Hadithah, 236km northwest of Baghdad on Friday.

The al-Hadithah correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses in the as-Subhani area as saying that a number of heavy mortar shells blasted into the al-Hadithah Department of Education building – a facility that the American military have taken over and turned into their local headquarters commanding their forces in the city.

The witnesses said that plumes of smoke rose from the building but no further details were available as a ban on motor traffic has been in effect in the city for some two months now.  A strangulation blockade has been in force in the city for more than a month and earthen walls have been erected on three sides of the city.  Despite all the restrictions, the Iraqi Resistance continues its attacks on the US occupation forces in and around the city.

Ar-Ramadi.

US troops in ar-Ramadi kill 16-year-old boy for spitting on them Saturday.

In a dispatch posted at 1:25pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that US occupation troops killed a 16-year-old boy after he spit on an American soldier in ar-Ramadi, about 110km west of Baghdad.

The ar-Ramadi correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that 16-year-old Ahmad Munajid ad-Dulaymi cursed a patrol of American troops as they passed by his house in the al-Mal'ab area of ar-Ramadi on Saturday and spit in the face of one of the US troops, witnesses said.  The American soldiers responded by laying into Ahmad, violently beating him for five minutes. When Ahmad’s mother came out of their house to plead with the soldiers to leave him alone, the Americans struck her and bashed her head and then shot the boy to death before her eyes.  The US troops then hurriedly left the area.

The correspondent reported that rage was boiling in ar-Ramadi at that hour as news spread of the murder and Resistance men flocked in to look at the scene where the crime took place.

Al-Fallujah.

Iraqi Resistance sharpshooter kills first lieutenant in puppet army in al-Fallujah Saturday morning.

In a dispatch posted at 2:41pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an Iraqi Resistance marksman shot and killed an Iraqi puppet army officer in the al-Fallahat area, 7km west of al-Fallujah Saturday morning.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses in the al-Bu 'Abd area of al-Fallahat as saying that a Resistance sharpshooter got out of a car, aimed his weapon at the Iraqi puppet army camp and shot a first lieutenant in the camp.  The Resistance fighters then walked back to his car and drove off.

The puppet troops responded by firing light and medium weapons at the farm fields and simple homes in the area, shooting wildly at nothing in particular for some time.  Then they undertook a search of nearby homes but arrested no one.

Resistance fighters ambush puppet army patrol, killing seven.

In a dispatch posted at 12:56pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that Iraqi Resistance forces staged a coordinated attack on a patrol of Iraqi puppet troops north of al-Karmah – which is located near al-Fallujah, about 60km west of Baghdad.

The al-Fallujah correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses in the al-Bu Sudah area north of al-Karmah as saying that Resistance men planted a bomb in a dead animal and then detonated it when the patrol was nearby, destroying one of their vehicles.  The Resistance fighters then pounced on the survivors, showering them with light and medium machine gun fire.  The ambush left seven of the puppet troops dead and three Humvees burned. The Resistance fighters seized the puppet troops’ weapons before leaving the scene.

Fourth mass arrest campaign in al-Fallujah in 10 days sees 36 Iraqis rounded up, taken away.

In a dispatch posted at 2:59pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that US occupation troops accompanied by their Iraqi puppet "National Guard" and puppet police allies carried out another campaign of mass arrests of civilians in al-Fallujah, about 60km west of Baghdad on Friday, the fourth in 10 days.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses in the al-Jawlan and ash-Shuhada’ neighborhoods as saying that US and Iraqi puppet forces carried out joint raids, arresting more than 36 local residents on the pretext that they belonged to "cells" of "terrorists" – meaning the Iraqi Resistance.

Half-hour gun battle in al-Fallujah Friday leaves two US troops reported dead.

In a dispatch posted at 12:10pm Makkah time midday Saturday, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that Iraqi Resistance forces attacked a US military column in al-Fallujah, about 60km west of Baghdad on Friday.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported shopkeepers whose stores are located on the city’s main street and who witnessed the ambush as saying that a detachment of more than 15 Resistance men staged a surprise attack on the column with light and medium weapons, hitting the Americans from two sides at once. They burned up and completely destroyed one vehicle, killing two US troops and seriously wounding a third in a gun battle that lasted more than half an hour.

The wounded man was seen being pulled out of the burning vehicle.  The charred corpses of the two dead Americans were transferred to another US vehicle.  The witnesses said that the fight was particularly fierce and that US gunfire damaged a number of shops in their area.

Baghdad.

Resistance bomb kills three puppet "Shock Troops" in ad-Durah.

In a dispatch posted at 2:31pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a patrol of puppet "Iraqi Interior Ministry Shock Troops (Maghawir)" in al-Mahdiyah district of the in southern Baghdad suburb of ad-Durah.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported a puppet police source as saying that a bomb that had been planted by the side of the road blew up by a passing patrol of "Shock Troops," killing three of them and seriously wounding a fourth in an incident that took place near the former headquarters of the Saddam’s Fedayeen Organization in al-Mahdiyah.

The correspondent reported that the "Shock Troops" are extensively deployed in that area and that one reason for the increased attacks to which they are being subjected there is that they undertake sectarian crimes against the local population.  The puppet "Interior Ministry Shock Troops (Maghawir)" are known for being made up of Shi'i sectarian militiamen who have frequently been involved in abduction, torture, and murder of Sunni Iraqis.

Resistance mortars pound US base in southern Baghdad before dawn Saturday.

In a dispatch posted at 12:46pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that Iraqi Resistance forces fired five 82mm mortar rounds into a US base located in southern Baghdad at 2am local time before dawn Saturday morning.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported Iraqi puppet army troops who witnessed the attack – and asked not to be identified – as saying that the US base in what formerly was the Military Academy in ar-Rustamiyah near the Diyala Bridge took direct hits in the barrage, which set off explosions inside the facility and sent plumes of smoke rising into the sky.

No information on US casualties was available – in keeping with the US policy of secrecy – but the road to the base remained closed at the time of writing, an indication that the strike had been severe.

Resistance fighters destroy hideout for pro-Iranian Jaysh al-Mahdi gunmen in southern Baghdad Friday.

In a dispatch posted at 12:26pm Makkah time midday Saturday, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that Iraqi Resistance forces attacked a hideout for pro-Iranian Jaysh al-Mahdi gunmen in southern Baghdad, killing two of the guards and destroying the whole building on Friday.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses on 60 Street in the southern Baghdad suburb of ad-Durah as saying that a group of Resistance men attacked the as-Sadriyin Shi'i mosque, which at night serves as a haven for the Jaysh al-Mahdi gunmen where young Sunnis are tortured and murdered.  The Resistance men closed the street and then attacked the facility, killing two guards and then placing explosives inside the building and blowing it up.  The Resistance men then withdrew having taken no casualties in the operation.

Salah ad-Din Province.

Ad-Dulu'iyah.

US soldier reported killed when Resistance bomb disables Bradley armored vehicle near ad-Dulu'iyah.

In a dispatch posted at 1:15pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded under a US Bradley armored vehicle in Salah ad-Din Province, north of Baghdad, Friday evening.

The Salah ad-Din Province correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported a puppet police source who wished to remain anonymous in ad-Dulu'iyah, 100km north of Baghdad, as saying that a Resistance bomb exploded under a US Bradley armored vehicle, totally disabling it and killing one American soldier and wounding two more of them.  US forces were observed closing the main road and the ad-Dulu'iyah Bridge as they hauled away the wrecked armored vehicle.  US aircraft came in and prowled the skies over the area and the Americans arrested four brothers who live in a house near the scene of the attack.

In a dispatch posted at 3:21pm the ad-Dulu'iyah correspondent reported eyewitnesses as saying that given the extent of damage to the Bradley it seemed likely that all the US troops who were aboard it at the time would have been killed.

Diyala Province.

Buhriz.

Resistance shoots down US helicopter near Buhriz; US admits 13 troops dead.

In a dispatch posted at 7:55pm Makkah time Saturday night, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that the Iraqi Resistance organization the Jaysh al-Mujahideen ["Army of the Holy Warriors"] had announced that it had shot down a US helicopter near the city of Buhriz, about 60km northeast of Baghdad.

The Buhriz correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that the helicopter was carrying more than 15 US Marines.  In an exclusive statement to Mafkarat al-Islam, a commander in the Jaysh al-Mujahideen said that the Resistance group in Buhriz had shot down the American helicopter with ground-based anti-aircraft fire.

Quds Press, in a dispatch posted Saturday evening, reported that Jaysh al-Mujahideen fighters opened fire with machine guns in the at-Tamayimah gardens area of Buhriz, scoring direct hits and bringing down the American helicopter.  A Jaysh al-Mujahideen source told Quds Press that 15 Americans were aboard the helicopter, not 13 as the US admitted, and that one of those was a high-ranking American officer.

In a dispatch posted at 7:47pm Makkah time Saturday night, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that the US military had admitted Saturday evening that an American military helicopter had crashed northeast of Baghdad.

Mafkarat al-Islam reported a news bulletin broadcast by al-Jazeera satellite TV as saying that the 13 military passengers and crew aboard the helicopter had all been killed.  Al-Jazeera offered no further details on the crash.

Quds Press reported that large numbers of US troops had surrounded the area where the helicopter crashed.  American helicopters fired bright flares that "turned the Buhriz night into day" Quds Press reported, as they hunted for the remains of the soldiers killed in the crash.

The Americans locked down the entire city of Buhriz, sealing it off from the outside world and imposing a curfew there.  Large numbers of US troops were being brought into the farm fields and gardens that extend around the area where the helicopter went down, Quds Press reported.  Local residents said that the Americans were searching the fields and farms and also the river that runs through the town, as it was expected that a number of the Americans could have fallen into its waters.

Ninwa Province.

Al-Mawsil.

Employee in official puppet regime TV company gunned down in al-Mawsil Saturday morning.

In a dispatch posted at 3:11pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that armed men in a civilian car shot and killed an employee with the puppet regime’s official Ninwa Television company in the northern city of al-Mawsil on Saturday morning.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported a puppet police source as saying that a group of men in a civilian car opened fire with machine guns on Muhammad Nuri as he was coming out of his home in the al-Jaza’ir neighborhood on the left bank (northeast side) of the city of al-Mawsil on his way to work.

Resistance captures officer in pro-American Kurdish separatist Peshmergah.

In a dispatch posted at 1:01pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that a short while earlier Iraqi Resistance forces captured an officer in the pro-American Kurdish separatist Peshmergah militia in the northern city of al-Mawsil.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses as saying that four Resistance men abducted Azad Mahmud, an officer in the Peshmergah from the al-Islah az-Zira'i district of al-Mawsil.  The Resistance men took his weapons and car, blindfolded him and drove him away to an unknown destination.

Resistance activity against the Peshmergah has increased following a religious ruling (fatwa) by Kurdish 'Ulama’ (Islamic scholars) saying that anyone serving the occupation and the Shi'i sectarians in the Peshmergah was an infidel.

Ninwa Province puppet policeman killed in ambush Friday.

In a dispatch posted at 2:09pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that a detachment of Resistance fighters killed a Ninwa Province puppet policeman near the at-Tahrir neighborhood of eastern al-Mawsil on Friday.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported a puppet police source as saying that Resistance fighters ambushed a puppet police patrol that was halted by a rest stop.  The patrol was a detail from the puppet "Protection Force" that worked for the provincial authorities.

Rabi'ah.

Resistance forces kill puppet army commander in Rabi'ah, near Syrian border, on Friday.

In a dispatch posted at 1:25pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded inside the office of an Iraqi puppet army officer in Rabi'ah near the Syrian border in northern Iraq on Friday.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses as saying that the blast killed the officer and wounded a US officer who was with him as well as a translator.

One witness who was with the puppet police and asked not to be identified said that the bomb was placed inside the office of Colonel Nizar ash-Shurji, the commander of the 1^st Regiment of the 3^rd Division of the puppet army on Friday.  The source said that the explosion took place in the Rabi'ah area, 170km west of al-Mawsil near the Syrian border.

A source in the puppet police also reported that Iraqi Resistance forces killed the director of International Transport northwest of al-Mawsil a day earlier.  The al-Mawsil correspondent reported the source as saying that the director of transport in Rabi'ah, Hazim Rasn was ambushed and killed by Resistance men who sprayed him with machine gun fire.

Karbala’ Province.

Karbala’.

Rocket attack targets puppet provincial government building in Karbala’ as night falls Saturday.

In a dispatch posted at 6:24pm GMT time Saturday, Quds Press reported that 14 rockets had landed near the building housing the puppet provincial government building in Karbala’, a Shi'i holy city south of Baghdad, as night fell Saturday.

The correspondent for Quds Press reported an officer in the puppet police force as saying that the puppet government building came under rocket attack but at that time there was no information on the nature or extent of any possible casualties.  The officer said that the apparent target of the attack was the provincial government building.

Nevertheless the puppet police increased patrols on major streets and cleared away thousands of Shi'i pilgrims for fear of further attacks.  The 10^th day of the Islamic month of al-Muharram – which falls on 29 January 2007 – is known as 'Ashura’ and is a time when Shi'ah come by the thousands to Karbala’ in commemoration of the death in that city of al-Husayn, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, in the year 60 of the Hijri calendar [680 C.E.].

Al-Basrah Province.

Al-Basrah.

Resistance fighters destroy two tankers hauling fuel to US bases in al-Faw Saturday afternoon.

In a dispatch posted at 4:50pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that a short while earlier, Iraqi Resistance forces had attacked and destroyed two Kuwaiti tankers hauling fuel to an American base in the al-Faw area south of al-Basrah in southern Iraq.

The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported eyewitnesses as saying that Resistance fighters unleashed a hail of bullets at the tankers, killing their Asian drivers. The witnesses observed that the trucks had Kuwaiti license plates.

Following the attack, occupation troops surrounded the entire area and carried out a thorough search of al-Faw – where the population is largely Sunni – but found nothing related to the attack.

The nearby Umm ar-Rasas area was the scene of the killing of four Asians who worked for the Kuwaiti al-Ahmadi Company transporting goods to the US and British occupation troops in Iraq.  Such goods included provisions, canned goods, and drinks.

British soldier reported killed in Resistance bomb attack in al-Basrah Saturday.

In a dispatch posted at 4:14pm Makkah time Saturday afternoon, Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a British patrol in the southern city of al-Basrah Saturday morning.

The al-Basrah correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported an officer in the puppet police in the city as saying that a homemade bomb blew up by a British Jeep that was part of a column of British military vehicles in the al-Hayaniyah district of al-Basrah.  The blast killed one British soldier and wounded three mercenaries – the private "security force" troops used in large numbers by the British forces in al-Basrah following a surge in Resistance attacks on the British in recent days.