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To: TigerPaw who wrote (30208)	10/17/2003 9:40:25 AM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

writ.news.findlaw.com

To: TigerPaw who wrote (30208)	10/17/2003 10:28:14 AM
From: Karen Lawrence	Respond to of 89467

Four U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq Clashes 32 minutes ago By HAMZA HENDAWI, Associated Press Writer KARBALA, Iraq - A joint U.S.-Iraqi patrol enforcing a curfew clashed with gunmen guarding the headquarters of a Shiite cleric, setting off a firefight that killed three Americans and 10 Iraqis, including two security officers, the U.S. Central Command and witnesses said. In Baghdad, another soldier from the 220th Military Police Brigade was killed and two were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded Friday morning. No further details were released. The Americans involved in the firefight at the cleric's headquarters in this southern city were members of the 101st Airborne Division, said Maj. Mike Escudie of Central Command in Tampa, Fla. Central Command said seven Americans were wounded in the clash. The deaths bring to 101 the number of U.S. soldiers killed in combat since President Bush (news - web sites) declared an end to major combat operations May 1. Five Iraqi security personnel also were wounded in the attack near Imam Abbas Mosque in Karbala, 50 miles south of Baghdad. Gunfire erupted again Friday morning in the same area of Karbala, where Thursday's late-night encounter may have signaled a new determination by the Americans to disarm religious-based militias and enforce curfews. An armored personnel carrier of the U.S.-led coalition opened fire Friday morning as screaming men, women and children fled for cover. Shiite gunmen defiantly shouted, "Allahu Akbar!" — "God is great!" The gunfire soon ended, but young Shiites still manned rooftop and street positions with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. Thursday night's fighting began when coalition military police and Iraqi authorities investigated reports of armed men congregating on a road near the Imam Abbas mosque after a 9 p.m. curfew, Central Command said. The two sides exchanged small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades. Malik Kazim, a gunman who said he participated in the battle, said the fighting involved armored vehicles and Humvees that passed the offices of a senior Shiite cleric, Mahmoud al-Hassani. The offices were guarded by at least 20 gunmen. Karbala has been under curfew since Tuesday, and the U.S.-Iraqi patrol ordered the gunmen inside the offices. When they refused, a shootout ensued, Kazim said. He said intense gunfire lasted about a half-hour as the U.S.-Iraqi patrol tried to "kill our master." A man identifying himself as Abu Ali, an aide to al-Hassani, said the Americans opened fire "without any provocation or warning." Eight Iraqi guards were killed, he said. Abu Ali said guards have been posted around al-Hassani's house since late August, when a car bomb in nearby Najaf killed another leading Shiite cleric and more than 80 other people. Initial reports said the joint patrol was made up of Americans and Poles. But military officials said later no Poles were involved. On Friday morning, large pools of blood were seen on the street and dozens of bullet holes, some large-caliber, were seen in the walls. Al-Hassani is one of Karbala's lesser-known ayatollahs — the highest clerical rank in Shiism. Rivalries among Shiite factions have led to sporadic violence recently, as Shiites suppressed under deposed President Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) flexes their new political muscle as a majority in Iraq (news - web sites). In Baghdad's Sadr City district, a stronghold for Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, about 6,000 Shiites chanted "No No U.S.A., Yes Yes Muqtada" at Friday prayers. Hundreds of yards away, U.S. tanks, armored personnel carriers and dozens of soldiers blocked off streets leading to a building housing the Sadr City council. Al-Sadr is a 30-year-old cleric who has been exhorting followers with fiery anti-American sermons but has stopped short of directly calling for attacks on U.S. military forces. His militia openly defies the U.S.-led administration's bans on private armies and people carrying unlicensed guns. Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said in comments published Friday that al-Sadr's militia will be disarmed by force if necessary. Zebari's comments were published in the London-based Arabic daily newspaper Al Hayat. Polish forces lead an international brigade responsible for postwar security in the Karbala area, commanding some 9,500 peacekeepers from 21 nations, including 2,400 Poles. The 31,000-square-mile area was handed over by American forces last month. On Thursday, the U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a resolution aimed at attracting more troops and money to help stabilize Iraq and speed its independence. In other developments: _One Humvee in an American convoy was damaged when a mine or homemade bomb exploded Friday near the central city of Fallujah, witnesses reported. There was no confirmation from Central Command. An average of more than 20 attacks a day are being staged against U.S. forces in Iraq. _A bombing at a police station in the northern city of Kirkuk wounded a policeman, Iran's official news agency IRNA reported. Station chief Lt. Col. Anwar Qader Ahmad said the attackers were Saddam loyalists. _In Irbil, 200 miles north of Baghdad, police also shot and killed the driver of a car packed with 220 pounds of explosives as he approached the police ministry office, the U.S. military said.

To: TigerPaw who wrote (30208)	10/17/2003 10:55:11 AM
From: Karen Lawrence	Respond to of 89467

Veterans for Common Sense Urges No Blank Check, Conditions on Funds for Iraq Seth Pollack Posted 10/16/2003 7:55:00 PM October 16, 2003: For Immediate Release Contact: EPIC Communications Assistant, Ashianna Esmail, (202) 543-6176 www.veteransforcommonsense.org In a joint letter signed by Veterans for Common Sense, Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC), Amnesty International USA, the National Council of Churches and a dozen other major national organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) qualified their support for the funds to rebuild Iraq provided by the Bush administration's $87 billion supplemental. The letter urges Congress to “send a clear message to the Administration to change its course in Iraq and to do far more to obtain the resources and expertise that are needed in Iraq from the broader international community.” Given the legal obligation and moral responsibility of the U.S. to provide assistance to the Iraqi people, the letter also expresses opposition for providing any portion of Iraq reconstruction funds through loans rather than grants. In closing, the 16 organizations declare that without setting clear conditions: “a vote for the supplemental will be a vote for the continuation of a failed policy. Billions more dollars will be wasted and thousands more lives put at risk. Congress must not repeat the mistake of providing a blank check for war.” Spokespersons available for comment include: Erik K. Gustafson, Executive Director, Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC) Karen J. Hanrahan, Director of Advocacy, Middle East & North Africa, Amnesty International USA Seth Pollack, Board President, Veterans for Common Sense (VCS) To arrange an interview, call Ashianna Esmail at EPIC at (202) 543-6176 Attached below is the full text and signers: October 16, 2003 Dear Member of Congress, As non-governmental organizations with a long history of work on Iraq, we do not support providing an $87 billion blank check to the Bush Administration for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress must send a clear message to the Administration to change its course in Iraq and to do far more to obtain the resources and expertise that are needed in Iraq from the broader international community. Under the 4th Geneva Convention, the United States as an occupying power has a legal obligation to ensure security and provide for the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people. By waging war in Iraq, our nation also has a moral responsibility to the Iraqi people. If adequate funds are not provided for reconstruction, Iraqis will suffer and the security situation will only worsen. At the same time, Congress must ensure that funds allocated to rebuild Iraq are spent responsibly through appropriate civilian and multilateral institutions. We are concerned that this is not being done. Furthermore, we fear that our nation is heading towards a strategic failure in Iraq, one with major national security implications. The Administration must heed the warnings of our allies, experts and Congressional leaders like you and dramatically change its course to ensure successful nation-building in Iraq. As you prepare to vote on the Administration’s $87 billion supplemental, we urge you to: (1) Support measures that encourage the Bush administration to allow greater accountability and transparency of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and allow multilateral institutions, including the UN, to have a clear independent mandate to work with the Iraqi people and guide the economic and political transition of the country. Such steps are necessary prerequisites for garnering adequate international support. UN agencies are best suited for the many complex tasks of nation-building, from providing food and basic services to laying the framework for new democratic institutions and processes. For example, UN agencies could supervise early elections in Iraq to form a constituent assembly for approving a new constitution (one that guarantees human rights, including full rights for women) and electing a transitional government. Participation in such a process will help re-enfranchise Iraqis, whose frustration at being shut out of the political transition is fueling much of the current violence. Furthermore, setting up an Iraq reconstruction fund, administered by the World Bank and United Nations, will increase chances of raising aid money from nations who opposed the Iraq war and were reluctant to channel aid through the U.S.-led authorities. (2) Support efforts that require open bidding for all reconstruction contracts, strengthen criminal penalties against war profiteering, and promote investment in locally based firms and contractors. The priority must be Iraqi-led rebuilding, not contracts for politically-connected U.S. corporations. Favoring Iraqi businesses and allowing greater transparency in the contracting process would save U.S. taxpayers billions and would help put widespread skepticism about U.S. intentions in Iraq to rest. (3) Oppose measures to fund any portion of Iraq’s reconstruction through loans rather than grants. As the occupying power the U.S. has a legal and moral obligation to provide for the reconstruction of Iraq. As some lawmakers argue, placing this financial burden on Iraqis, who already face massive odious debts incurred by Saddam Hussein’s regime, would undermine prospects for stable democracy in that country and discourage other nations from making financial contributions to Iraq’s reconstruction. Without such conditions, a vote for the supplemental will be a vote for the continuation of a failed policy. Billions more dollars will be wasted and thousands more lives put at risk. Congress must not repeat the mistake of providing a blank check for war. Sincerely,