Updated at 11:29 p.m. EDT, June 22, 2008
At least 46 Iraqis
were killed and another 79 were wounded in the latest attack. A female suicide
bomber attacked a government center in Baquba at the end of the work day, leaving
behind dozens of casualties. No Coalition deaths were reported.
A female
suicide bomber blew herself up outside the Baquba governmental center,
killing
17 people and wounding 42 others. A number of policemen were among the casualties
The explosion occurred as the courthouse was winding down proceedings for the
day. In an unrelated incident, three gunmen were
detained in connection with the kidnapping and murder of three family members
this week.
Mortars in Khalis killed seven
people and wounded 12 more.
In Baghdad, three
dumped bodies were recovered. U.S. forces killed
six suspects and wounded another in several incidents on Friday; they had
been observed trying to plant roadside bombs in various locations around the New
Baghdad neighborhood.
A roadside bomb near Kirkuk killed
three and wounded two more. Two women were among the dead. Another bomb, this
one in al-Wasiti, left no
casualties. In nearby Fashka village, a roadside bomb killed
four people and wounded
two others.
In Mosul, one
policeman was killed and another was wounded in a drive-by shooting. Seventeen
people were wounded during a suicide
car bombing at a checkpoint in Wihda.
A roadside bomb killed
three Iraqi soldiers near Muqdadiyah.
A bomb hidden in a bag
injured two people at a
market in Hilla.
Near Buhriz, five shepherds were kidnapped.
The Iraqi army detained
65 suspects in Dhi Qar province.
Three Iraqis and an Egyptian were
detained in connection with
the assassination of a tribal leader in Awja.
Five wanted men and
a cache of ammo were seized
in Basra.
Three suspects carrying attack plans were captured
as they were trying to sneak in Karbala.
In Amara, Iraqi
security forces conducted a second search of several areas in the city. Sixteen
people were detained.
More weapons were also found.
Sixty suspects were arrested
in other areas of southern Iraq.
Also, Iraqi courts have ordered
that 20,000 detainees be freed. This includes people convicted of petty crimes
but does not potentially innocent inmates held in Coalition prisons. Amnesty laws
have been a point of contention between Sunni Arabs, who feel they have been unjustly
targeted, and the Shi'ite majority government. Tens of thousands more out on bail
or otherwise accused of crimes have had their warrants dropped as well.
Squatters
in Baghdad have been given
a deadline to leave occupied homes so that their owners may return home to
claim them. They will be forcibly evicted after the deadline. Between four and
five million Iraqis are thought to have left the country or been internally displaced
due to sectarian attacks, the U.S. invasion, or other violence.
Compiled
by Margaret Griffis