US Says 34 Terrorists Killed in Offensives in Iraq
The U.S. military in Iraq says troops have killed at least 34 insurgents in offensives north and south of Baghdad.
The military says troops killed 30 suspected terrorists and found numerous weapons and bombs in a massive operation against al-Qaida in Iraq northeast of Baghdad. In a simultaneous offensive southeast of the city, U.S. troops killed four insurgents and detained 62.
Police in the Iraqi capital say they found the bodies of at least 29 people Wednesday – apparent victims of sectarian violence.
Also, three Sunni mosques were bombed south of the capital.
The U.S. military also says American and Iraqi soldiers discovered an orphanage this month housing 24 severely malnourished and abused boys in Baghdad’s Fajr neighborhood. The boys, ages 3 to 15-years-old, were found naked in a darkened room, with many tied to their beds.
Separately, In Mosul, police say gunmen kidnapped at least seven university students and their Christian professor.
And, British Defense Ministry officials report that one British soldier was killed in the southern Iraqi city of Basra.
Meanwhile, the death toll from Tuesday’s truck bombing outside a Shi’ite mosque in Baghdad has risen to 87. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki blamed the attack on Sunni extremists.
The bombing came two days after the lifting of a city-wide curfew put in place to prevent sectarian attacks after last week’s bombing of a revered Shi’ite shrine, in Samarra. The shrine bombing sparked retaliatory attacks on Sunni mosques.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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