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A horrific explosion on Saturday morning in the huge Sadr City district here killed at least 35 people, mostly women and children, when a bomb detonated next to a line [...]

The article discusses how the Shiite majority in Baghdad, Iraq are trying to claim the capital as their own. In the Baghdad Provincial Council, which runs all the cities services, 51 members are Shiites, while only one member is Sunni. When the Iraq War began, Sunni militants were the dominating force in Iraq, and they persecuted many who were Shiites. Many in the Shiite-dominated government do not want more United States troops to come to Iraq in fear it will only escalate violence.

The authors report that six bombings occurred across Baghdad, Iraq and the U.S. death toll for October 2006 was the highest since January 2005. Thirty-three Shiite laborers were killed in a single Sadr City bombing. Attacks such as these in Sadr City, a Shiite slum, anger Shiite leaders and put pressure on Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, a Shiite, to have more control over national security.

The article focuses on Mansour, an upscale suburb of Baghdad, Iraq where religious sects mix. The once comfortable enclave is experiencing a wave of insurgent attacks, including the killing of a city councilman and the kidnapping of four Russian Embassy workers. Despite a new permanent government and the killing of terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Iraqis are more frightened than ever as neighborhoods fall to insurgents. Some areas border on anarchy and Iraqis are frantic for the government to halt the violence.

The article focuses on terrorism insurance in Iraq. Death by terrorism is not covered by accident insurance in Iraq, partly because the state used to compensate families of war victims directly. A year ago, the Iraq Insurance Company stepped into the gap. In a country where terrorism kills hundreds of people monthly, no one can rely on the government or employers to provide for their relatives. A state-owned group, the Iraq Insurance Company has sold around 200 terrorism policies in the last year. It is also negotiating with various government ministries and private companies for group policies.

The article focuses on Shiite forces who took over the Sunni town of Salman Pak, Iraq. Suspected insurgents were driven out and a Shiite took over as mayor. Although stability was restored, U.S. soldiers uncovered abuses against Sunni prisoners. American authorities are facing a dilemma as they begin scaling back their military commitment. The overwhelming majority of Iraq's soldiers and special forces are Shiites. Shiites are restoring some order, but are also provoking bitterness among Sunnis, which risks fueling the insurgency.

The article examines the impact of sectarian hatred on Iraq's towns and cities. Deep tensions that have long divided Iraqi society are erupting with violence. As the hatred between Sunni Arabs and Shiites escalates, families are leaving their mixed communities for safer areas, creating increasingly polarized enclaves and redrawing the sectarian map of Iraq. Those areas among the most mixed and violent are in four provinces, including Baghdad. The violent sectarianism is a holdover from Saddam Hussein's rule. One result of has been serious carnage, and the motives for the attacks are often complicated.

He was not deserting his men, the Iraqi Army captain insisted Wednesday. He had left his 70 soldiers in the midst of a battle in Sadr City the day before to take his long-overdue three-day break. The captain, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, said he intended to extend the break to five days, maybe longer. He had not been paid in two months and was overwhelmed by the problems of commanding his company, part of the 1st Brigade, 11th Iraqi Army Division. He was considering not going back to the fight in Sadr City. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A senior aide to the radical anti-American cleric Moktada al-Sadr was assassinated in Najaf as he returned home from Friday Prayer, raising the likelihood that tensions would climb still higher between Mr. Sadr's loyalists and the Iraqi government forces they have been battling. The police declared a curfew in Najaf, the holiest Shiite city in Iraq, and deployed reinforcements on the streets, fearing a backlash after the murder of the aide, Riyadh al-Nuri. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Militiamen with the Mahdi Army, the followers of the Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr, mostly vanished from the streets of Basra on Monday, a day after he ordered them to lay down their arms and also insisted that the Iraqi government grant a general amnesty for his followers, and made other demands. Iraqi Army and police forces immediately moved into Basra neighborhoods abandoned by the Mahdi Army, which is the armed wing of Mr. Sadr's political movement, setting up checkpoints and searching for roadside bombs. As helicopters continued buzzing overhead, shops began to reopen and residents ventured out into the streets. The southern Iraqi city had been a battleground since Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki ordered federal forces to begin an assault on the city a week ago. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article reports on the arrest of 16 people suspected in killings and kidnappings in Iraq. The U.S. and Iraqi forces searched some buildings in Sadr City and arrested the suspects. The armed forces raided the buildings on February 27, 2007. The raids are reported to be the largest military operation in Sadr City since the U.S. and Iraqi forces jointly began crackdown to wrest control of Baghdad from sectarian militias.

The article provides information on several terrorists attacks in Iraq including a bomb explosion in Sadr city, Iraq on September 23, 2006. There were 35 Iraqis including women and children killed in the bombings. A Sunni insurgent group claimed responsibility for the blast immediately afterwards through the Internet.

The article reports on the appeal of leaders of Kurdish to main Shiite alliance to withdraw the interim prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, as its candidate for prime minister in the next government of Iraq.

The article reports on the decision of Shiites to reclaim the Mosque No. 5-833 of Sector 3 in Baghdad, Iraq, and call it the Imam Ali Mosque, after the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad whose murder catalyzed the epochal Sunni-Shiite split.

The article reports on the intimidation tactics of Sunni militants in Iraq over the weekend of March 10-11, 2007. Sunni and Shiite homes in a mixed town northeast of Baghdad were burned, and a car bombing killed at least 19 people in Karada, including pilgrims returning from religious observances in Karbala.

The article highlights the changing role of Moktada al-Sadr, the Iraqi leader of the Mahdi Army, a powerful Shiite militia group. It is reported that he has been working with Iraq's Shiite prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, and Iraq's top Shiite cleric in order to persuade against sectarianism. The impact this has on his ability to command the Mahdi Army is explored.

This article discusses the general lack of trust that much of the Shiite population in Iraq has in the government's ability to protect them. Many Shiites believe the Mahdi army of cleric Moktada al-Sadr should not be disarmed until the Iraqi government can provide security against the Sunni militias. The author mentions that a rogue fringe of the Mahdi Army may be responsible for much of the crime in the country.

The authors report that the Iraqi government dismissed its two most senior police commanders who had led Iraq's special police commandos and its public order brigade. Iraq Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki is under strong U.S. pressure to eliminate Shitte militias and death squads from within the ranks of Iraq's special police forces.

The authors report that repercussions of Pope Benedict XVI's remarks about Islam continue to threaten the already shrinking Christian population in Iraq. They have long been a tiny minority, but since the ouster of Saddam Hussein, their status is increasingly uncertain and they have been subjected to church bombings and assassinations. Estimates of their resulting exodus ranges in the tens of thousands to over 100,000.

The article focuses on non-government organizations and charities in Iraq, 5,000 of which have been registered there from 2003 to 2006. Khadija Tuma, director of the office in the Ministry of Civil Affairs, speaks of the benefits of various charities for alleviating poverty and developing a functioning democracy in Iraq.

The article reports that Shiite leaders in Iraq denounced a joint American-Iraq raid on a Shiite compound and suspended negotiations over a new government. Details of the raid are reviewed. The author reviews the recent surge in lawlessness and sectarian violence in Iraq is discussed. According to the author, President Jalal Talabani said he would lead a joint Iraqi-American committee to investigate the raid. It is suggested that the tension between the American authorities and the Shiite political leadership has many sources.

This article reports on traffic in the city of Baghdad, Iraq. About 30 percent to 40 percent of the city's major roads are blocked to protect against car bombs. Officials maintain that about half of the city's traffic lights are operative, however, the author seems to believe that the actual percentage is far lower. The traffic lights run on power supplies that are only available for about a third of the day, and not necessarily during peak traffic hours.

The Iraqi government has dismissed 1,300 soldiers and policemen who deserted or refused to fight during last month's Shiite-on-Shiite battles in Basra, it said Sunday. The announcement followed the admission that more than 1,000 members of the security forces had laid down their weapons during the fight, which Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki characterized as a campaign to restore law and order to Basra, a strategic and oil-rich southern city. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article reports on a declaration made by the government of Iraq regarding the death toll in the northern city of Tal Afar, Iraq due to truck bombing in March 2007. The government has put the death toll at 152 people, which is about double as compared to the early reports. It is stated that it was the highest total from a single bomb in the four-year-old war provided the above-mentioned death toll declared by the government is correct.

The article focuses on corruption in Iraq's government. A recent independent survey reported that Iraq is the third most corrupt country in the world. Bribes are needed to secure any government service, especially employment. U.S. officials estimate as much as a third of their funds spent in Iraq is eventually stolen, with much of the money going to the Shiite and Sunni militias U.S. troops are fighting.

The article discusses the results of the so-called U.S. troop surge to bring security to Iraq. Countrywide death rates have not decreased significantly because of suicide bombings. For U.S. troops, Baghdad has become deadlier, with the double the American deaths over 7 weeks of the Baghdad push versus the same period previously. Commanders say it will be months before the campaign's effectiveness can be evaluated.

The article discusses Iraqi insurgents' changed tactics, including the use of chlorine in Baghdad, Iraq truck-bomb attacks against civilians. Officials called it a new and deadly tactic, aimed at raising the level of fear and havoc as a new security plan is being put into effect. Chlorine has been used in three truck-bomb attacks within a month. Insurgents have also shifted tactics in downing helicopters and adapting roadside bombs to penetrate armored Humvee vehicles.

The article discusses declining mosque attendance among Muslims in Iraq as a result of increasing sectarian violence between Sunni and Shiite factions. The author notes that attacks aimed at religious buildings damages the communal fabric as the mosques are traditional communal gathering sites. Many faithful Muslims now listen to religious programs on compact discs from home in order to avoid the violence.

The article reports that a marketplace in the largely Shiite Sadr City district of Baghdad, Iraq was devastated by a suicide car bomber. At least 62 were killed and nearly 120 wounded in the deadliest insurgent attack since the Shiite-led government took charge in May 2006. A Sunni Arab member of the Paliament and her bodyguards were kidnapped, posing new challenges to the Iraqi government, which is trying to secure the capital. New details emerged about a U.S. military investigation into American soldiers who were accused of raping an Iraqi woman and killing her and three family members.

The article focuses on sectarian violence in Iraq, reporting that the bodies of more than 85 executed men have surfaced across Baghdad in the past two days, in Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods. Many bore marks of torture, though it is unclear who is responsible. The wave of killings comes at a time as the U.S. looks to Iraq forces to stem the violence. Less than a month after an assault on a Shiite shrine nearly plunged the country into civil war, the violence continues. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld hinted at a temporary increase in troop levels.

The Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr on Sunday called for his followers to stop fighting in Basra and in turn demanded concessions from Iraq's government, after six days in which his Mahdi Army militia has held off an American-supported Iraqi assault on the southern port city. The substance of Mr. Sadr's statement, released Sunday afternoon, was hammered out in elaborate negotiations over the past few days with senior Iraqi officials, some of whom traveled to Iran to meet with Mr. Sadr, according to several officials involved in the discussions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Shiite militiamen in Basra openly controlled wide swaths of the city on Saturday and staged increasingly bold raids on Iraqi government forces sent five days ago to wrest control from the gunmen, witnesses said, as Iraqi political leaders grew increasingly critical of the stalled assault. Witnesses in Basra said members of the most powerful militia in the city, the Mahdi Army, were setting up checkpoints and controlling traffic in many places ringing the central district controlled by some of the 30,000 Iraqi Army and police forces involved in the assault. Fighters were regularly attacking the government forces, then quickly retreating. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The American military conducted airstrikes Thursday and Friday to back up stalled Iraqi forces in Basra and battle Shiite militias in Baghdad as continued violence and political infighting worsened the prospects for any timely reconciliation among Iraq's warring factions. Although American officials have emphasized that the campaign in the southern port city of Basra is directed by Iraqi forces, the Iraqis have failed so far to wrest control of neighborhoods in Basra from Shiite militias and asked the Americans and British to step in. The Iraqi military does not have jet fighters. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

American-trained Iraqi security forces failed for a third straight day to oust Shiite militias from the southern city of Basra on Thursday, even as President Bush hailed the operation as a sign of the growing strength of Iraq's federal government. The fighting in Basra against the Mahdi Army, the armed wing of the political movement led by the radical Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr, set off clashes in cities throughout Iraq. Major demonstrations were staged in a number of Shiite areas of Baghdad, including Sadr City, the huge neighborhood that is Mr. Sadr's base of power. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Heavy fighting broke out Tuesday in two of Iraq's largest cities, as Iraqi ground forces and helicopters mounted a huge operation to break the grip of the Shiite militias controlling Basra, and Iraqi forces clashed with militias in Baghdad. The fighting threatened to destabilize a long-term truce that had helped reduce the level of violence in the five-year-old Iraq war. The battles, along with indications in recent weeks that militia and insurgent attacks had already been creeping up, raised fears across Iraq that Moktada al-Sadr, the renegade Shiite cleric, could pull out of a cease-fire he declared last summer. If his Mahdi Army militia does step up attacks, that could in turn slow American troop withdrawals. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article reports on the suicide bombings on Shiite Muslim pilgrims, killing at least 109 and injuring more than 200 on Tuesday. Nine American soldiers were also in the causality list. In Hilla, a southern city on the way to the Holy city of Karbala, the first suicide bomber lured the pilgrims by handing them food, a custom during the festivities of annual Arbaeen religious festival. The second bomber waited for a few minutes for relatives to rush to the help of the victims.

The article reports on the arrest of the second highest official of the Health Ministry of Iraq by Iraqi and American troops, accusing him of funneling millions of dollars to miscreant Shiite militants. The U.S. military suspected that the officials used his office as a means to operate a unit of a Shiite militia, the Mahdi Army. Many Iraqi government officials claim that the arrested official is Deputy Health Minister Hakim al-Zamili.

The article reports that Iraq is re-establishing diplomatic relations with Syria after more than 20 year with no formal avenues of communication. Iraq agrees to restore a Syrian embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, following Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem's recent meeting with Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.