Saturday: 5 Iraqis Killed, 11 Wounded

Updated at 8:45 p.m. EST, Mar. 21, 2009

At least five Iraqis were killed and 11 more were wounded in the latest reported attacks. No Coalition deaths were reported, but a bomb blast targeted a U.S. patrol in Baghdad.

Almost all Awakening Council (Sahwa) guards are now under the authority of the Iraqi government. The U.S. still has about 10,000 men to transfer to the Iraqi payroll. The U.S. had paid the men to join forces with the U.S., even though many had fought alongside al-Qaeda previously. This led to a massive reduction in violence. Because the Sahwa councils are Sunni-led, their transfer to Iraqi authority is seen as a positive effort at reconciliation.

A rare roadside bomb blast in Amara killed one policeman and wounded three others.

A roadside bomb killed a Sahwa member north of Hilla.

In Mosul, the body of a former army officer was found. Two gunmen were killed during a clash wiht police.

In Baghdad, a pair of roadside bombs wounded three people yesterday evening in Karrada. A roadside bomb targeting U.S. troops in Zayouna left no casualties, but a later bomb blast wounded four civilians.

A neighborhood police chief was wounded in Tikrit when a roadside bomb blasted his vehicle. Last night, another blast in the same neighborhood left no injuries.

U.S. forces arrested a civilian during a raid in Iskandariya.

In separate operations across Missan province, security forces arrested three people and confiscated 45 cannon shells.

Ten al-Qaeda suspects were arrested in Baquba.

Compiled by Margaret Griffis