US Air Strike Kills Seven Insurgents, Two Children in Iraq
12 June 2006
The U.S. military in Iraq says a coalition airstrike has killed seven al-Qaida-linked insurgents and two children Monday near Baquba.
The military says the insurgents had ties to senior al-Qaida leaders and worked to help foreign fighters in the restive area.
Major General William Caldwell confirmed two boys, aged six months and four years, were also killed in the strike. He called their deaths extremely unfortunate, and says the children were with insurgents who were shooting at U.S. forces.
A third child was wounded and evacuated for medical treatment.
The raid is the latest since a U.S. airstrike killed the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, near Baquba last week. The terror group said in an Internet statement Monday it had appointed Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajer as its new leader.
In Baghdad Monday, Iraqi police say a roadside bomb killed at least six people.
In other developments, the judge at the trial of deposed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussen threw out Saddam's half-brother and co-defendant, Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti, after he yelled at the judge.
And Saddam's American lawyer, Curtis Doebbler, lashed out at the court, saying it was not giving the defense enough time to present its case.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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