Sun, 03:09 13 Dec 2009 GMT17

 

Bomb kills four Iraqi soldiers, bridge blown up
17 Oct 2009 10:25:41 GMT
Source: Reuters
* Attacks in former insurgent hotbed

* Truck bomb cuts Baghdad's main link with Jordan, Syria

FALLUJA, Iraq, Oct 17 (Reuters) - A roadside bomb killed at least four Iraqi soldiers near the western town of Falluja on Saturday and a truck bomb in another western city destroyed a main bridge linking Baghdad to Syria and Jordan, police said.

Daily attacks still plague the nation of nearly 30 million people, which is trying to rebuild the economy and boost oil output in the world's 11th largest producer, despite hard-won security gains over the last 18 months.

The police said the Falluja attack occurred 2 km (1.2 miles) outside the city -- 50 km (32 miles) west of the Iraqi capital -- on a road linking Baghdad to the former insurgent hotbed. The source said 10 soldiers were wounded in the blast.

In a separate attack, a suicide truck bomber blew up the main bridge in northern Ramadi that gives Baghdad, 100 km (60 miles) to the east, access to Syria and Jordan, a police official said. No casualties were reported.

The insurgency has waned since Washington sent thousands of extra troops and built alliances with Sunni tribal leaders in Iraq's western provinces. Some observers, however, fear an increase in attacks ahead of national elections in January. (Reporting by Fadhel al-Badrani in Falluja and Muhanad Mohammed in Baghdad; Writing by Jack Kimball; Editing by)
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (L) walks with U.S. Army Lt. General Kenneth Hunzeker after arriving at Baghdad International Airport December 10, 2009. Secretary Gates is in Iraq following a ...



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