VIOLENCE CONTINUES TO RAGE IN IRAQ
Rare female suicide bombing wounds seven U.S. troops and five Iraqis. A woman wearing an explosives belt blew herself up near an American patrol northeast of Baghdad in Diyala province. Attacks by women in Iraq are believed to be rare but not unprecedented. [Washington Post, 11/28/07]
Eight in ten reporters say most of Baghdad is still too dangerous to visit despite surge. The survey by the Washington-based Pew Research Center showed that many U.S. journalists believe coverage has painted too rosy a picture of the conflict. "Eight in 10 journalists believe conditions have deteriorated for reporters since their own first posting in the country," the survey's authors said. Most journalists believe violence and the threat of violence have increased during their tenures. Much of the danger for journalists is faced by local Iraqis, who often do most of the reporting outside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, the data showed. At least 122 journalists and 41 media support staff have been killed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, the New-York based Committee to Protect Journalists says. About 85 % of those killed were Iraqis. [Reuters, 11/28/07]
30 bodies found in a west Baghdad house in an area formerly controlled by Islamist militants. Most of the victims were apparently Shi'a. Police and citizens groups found the bodies after searching the areas that were previously under the control of the Islamists. Iraqi police described the site in the heavily Sunni Muslim Hur Rijab section of the Dora neighborhood as a grisly scene, with decomposed bodies wrapped in black plastic. Elsewhere Saturday, a reporter for the independent TV station Baghdadiya was reported kidnapped in the capital. [LA Times, 11/27/07]
IRAQ CONTINUES TO BE DEFINED BY SECTARIAN DIVISIONS
Iraqi lawmakers boycott the start of a legislative session. On Wednesday, Iraqi lawmakers briefly boycotted the start of a legislative session, demanding that U.S. forces cease checkpoint searches as they try to enter the Green Zone, where the parliament building is located. Firyad Rawndouzi, spokesman for the Kurdish bloc, said the boycott came in response to "the insulting behavior of the American soldiers toward parliament members" as they tried to reach the building. [Washington Post, 11/28/07]
Bush meets with Shi'a leader in Washington. President Bush met with Shi'a leader Abdul Aziz al-Hakim at the White House on Tuesday. According to the White House, the leaders discussed the importance of the agreement reached by Bush and al-Maliki to start formal talks next year about the long-term relationship between Iraq and the U.S. Hakim's party has close ties with Iran, which the United States accuses of funding, training and arming Shi'a militias blamed for sectarian bloodshed in Iraq. [Reuters, 11/27/07]
REFUGEE CRISIS CONTINUES
Returning from Syria, Iraqis question safety. While Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government says improved security as a result of the US surge of troops is drawing refugees back, UN observers and many of the departing Iraqis themselves are skeptical about what awaits them back in Baghdad. Tough economic realities and new visa restrictions in Syria are forcing many to leave. "I have no money because there is no work for us here," says one refugee. After an initial rush in October spurred by changes in visa regulations, the number has slowed. A UNHCR survey of 110 families released last week said that 46% of Iraqis were leaving because they could not afford to stay and 26% were leaving due to new visa rules. Only 14% said they were returning because of improved security. [CS Monitor, 11/28/07]