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30 Killed in Twin Iraq Insurgent Attacks
24 minutes ago
By SAMEER N. YACOUB, Associated Press Writer
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Insurgents launched two major attacks Friday against a Shiite mosque and a police station in Baghdad, killing 30 people including at least 16 police officers, the deadliest insurgent violence in weeks.
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In the north, U.S. and Iraqi troops battled gunmen in Mosul, leaving at least 11 guerrillas and a policeman dead, Iraqi commanders said. The fighting in Iraq (news - web sites)'s third-largest city — a center of violence since a major uprising last month — came a day after a U.S. soldier was killed in the city.
Also Friday, a U.S. soldier was killed and two were wounded Friday when a roadside bomb hit their their patrol near the northern city of Kirkuk, the U.S. military said.
Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's Sunni rebel group, al-Qaida in Iraq, claimed responsibility for the attack on the police station in Baghdad's western Amil district. The claim, which appeared on an Islamic Web site, could not immediately be verified.
"The destructive effect that such operations has on the morale of the enemy inside and on its countries and people abroad is clear," the claim said.
In the attack, gunmen first shelled the police station near the dangerous road to Baghdad International Airport. Then guerrillas stormed the station, killing 16 policemen, looting weapons, releasing detainees and torching several cars, Police Capt. Mohammed al-Jumeili said. He said several policemen and detainees at the station were wounded.
U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jim Hutton said gunmen in 11 cars attacked the station with rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire. He said a U.S. military Humvee was also damaged. There were no American casualties. There was no word on the insurgents' casualties.
The U.S. Embassy on Thursday barred employees from the highway leading to Baghdad's airport, the scene of frequent attacks on vehicles.
The attack on the Shiite mosque came in the Baghdad neighborhood of Azamiyah, a Sunni Muslim stronghold. Police said a car bomb exploded at the Hameed al-Najar Mosque, killing 14 people and wounding 19.
Azamiyah was a major center of Sunni support for Saddam Hussein (news - web sites), and the targeting of the mosque may have been a bid by Sunnis to stoke civil strife in the area. It wasn't clear who was behind the bombing.
The imam of a Sunni mosque in the same neighborhood condemned the attack and warned Muslims to be wary of people trying to ignite a sectarian conflict.
"Iraqi resistance has nothing to do with bombing mosques and churches and killing innocent people in markets and streets," said Sheik Ahmed Hassan Al-Taha, imam of Abu Hanifa mosque. "These acts are against the law of God."
The claim from al-Zarqawi's group said 30 people were killed in the Amil attack and only two escaped. The group also claimed responsibility for an attack on a police station in Azamiyah.
There were no reports of casualties from the strike on that police station, and it wasn't clear if it was linked to the mosque bombing, which was not mentioned.
In the same claim, Zarqawi's group said