US Warplanes Pound al-Qaida in Iraq Safehouses South of Baghdad
By VOA News
10 January 2008
The U.S. military in Iraq says it carried out major air strikes against al-Qaida in Iraq Thursday, flattening what the military called terrorist safehouses on the southern outskirts of Baghdad.
A military statement said warplanes dropped more than 18,000 kilograms of explosives on three large areas in Arab Jabour. The statement said more than 40 targets were hit.
There were no immediate reports of casualties from the air strikes, which are described as part of a countrywide military offensive, Operation Phantom Phoenix, launched this week against al-Qaida in Iraq insurgents.
Separately, Iraqi security officials said at least three people were killed and 11 wounded in two bomb blasts in central Baghdad. Police say the explosions occurred near a security checkpoint and that most of the victims were police and army troops.
In other news, a World Health Organization report released Wednesday estimates that 150,000 civilians died from violence in Iraq in the first three years after the U.S.-led invasion.
A WHO statistician, Ties Boerma, says the figure lies somewhere between 100,000 and 220,000 for the period March 2003 to June 2006.
Other organizations have put the death toll between 30,000 and 600,000.
The WHO study also finds that violence is the main cause of death for Iraqi men ages 15 to 59.
But the report's authors say the estimate should be viewed cautiously, citing difficulties conducting surveys in conflict zones. The surveys were conducted by the Iraqi government and the WHO. Interviewers visiting about 9,000 households in 1,000 neighborhoods.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
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