Iraq Violence Kills at Least 38

October 20, 2006 -- IRAQ NEWS

At Least 38 Killed in Heightened Iraq Violence

The remains of 120 unidentified Iraqis, who apparently have been shot to death, were buried Thursday in the latest reminder of a gruesome wave of tit-for-tat killings while a spate of attacks killed at least 38. The US military said Thursday it was reviewing strategy in Baghdad where violence had risen by at least 20 percent in the first three weeks of the holy month of Ramadan. (Daily Star)

Iraq's Violence Heading toward Two-Year High

Insurgents have used the Muslim holy month Ramadan, when dawn-to-dusk fasting marks the revelation of the Koran to the prophet Muhammad, to incite one of the most violent months since the start of the Iraq war. (Christian Science Monitor)

US Military Says 11 Soldiers will be Tried for Murdering Iraqis

Eleven American soldiers will be court-martialed on charges of murdering Iraqis, including four accused of killing a raped girl and her family, the US military said Thursday. (Daily Star)

Shiite Militia Takes Over Iraqi City

The Shiite militia run by anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr seized total control of the southern Iraqi city of Amarah on Friday in one of the boldest acts of defiance yet by one of the country's powerful, unofficial armies, witnesses and police said. (AP)

N. KOREA NUCLEAR TEST

EXCLUSIVE: North Korea on Another Nuke Test: 'Watch What Happens'

Vice Foreign Minister Says U.S., North Korea Don't Need to Be Enemies. (ABC News)

GUANTANAMO

Hambali's First Words

Hambali, the alleged Bali bombing mastermind now being held at Guantanamo Bay after three years in CIA captivity, has told his family through the International Red Cross that he is "doing fine." (Sydney Morning Herald)

LEBANON

Hezbollah Used Cluster Bombs, Rights Group States

The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired Chinese-manufactured cluster bombs into civilian areas in Israel during the conflict this summer, Human Rights Watch said yesterday. (Boston Globe)

Lebanon Approves CCTV Cameras On Beirut Roads

Lebanon approved on Thursday a long-delayed plan to place closed circuit cameras on all roads in Beirut to tighten security after a wave of bombings and political killings. (Reuters)

ERITREA/SOMALIA

U.S. Accuses Eritrea of Arming Somali Islamists

The United States accused Eritrea on Thursday of opening another front against its foe Ethiopia by shipping arms to Somali Islamists who are rivals to a Western-backed interim government. (Reuters)

Somali Islamists May Execute Ethiopian "Spies"

Two Ethiopians arrested in Mogadishu and accused of spying on Somalia's newly powerful Islamist movement will be charged with espionage soon and could be put to death, Islamist officials said on Friday. (Reuters)

SUDAN

Darfur Rebels Demand Talks, Self-Determination

A new Darfur rebel alliance is ready for talks with the government but demands self-determination for the war-torn, arid west of the country, senior rebel leaders said on Thursday. (Reuters)

RUSSIA

About 100 NGOs Suspended in Russia

Russia brushed aside U.S. objections Thursday and forced nearly 100 foreign non-governmental organizations, including leading human rights groups, to suspend operations for missing a deadline for re-registration under a tough, new law. (Reuters)

FOLEY SCANDAL

Exclusive: Former House Clerk's Testimony

The former clerk of the House of Representatives, Jeff Trandahl, who testified for more than four hours before the House Ethics Committee today, is believed to have testified that a top aide to House Speaker Dennis Hastert was informed of "all issues dealing with the page program," according to a Republican familiar with the investigation. (ABC News)

U.S.

Human Remains Found by Utility Workers at World Trade Center

More than five years after the World Trade Center came crashing down, human remains keep cropping up near the site, angering family members who lost loved ones in the terrorist attack. (AP)

AFGHANISTAN

Gunmen Kill 8 Civilians in Afghanistan

Gunmen ambushed a car carrying Afghan civilians working on a remote U.S. military base in eastern Afghanistan and killed eight of them execution-style, a police official said Friday. (AP)

PAKISTAN

Five Killed In Blast in Pakistan's Peshawar

A bomb blast killed five people and wounded 21 others in Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar on Friday, police said. (Reuters)

Security Forces Arrest Tribal Militants' Commander In Pakistan

Pakistani security forces have arrested a militants' commander of Marri tribe, one of three major tribes in restive areas of Baluchistan province, the DAWN newspaper reported Thursday. (Xinhua)

Baglihar Claim by Pak is Rejected

Pakistan has received a major setback as a World Bank- appointed expert is reported to have rejected its claim that the 450-MW Baglihar hydroelectric project under construction on the Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district violated the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty. (Asian Age)

NIGERIA

Nigerian Leaders 'Stole' $380bn

More than $380bn has either been stolen or wasted by Nigerian governments since independence in 1960, the chief corruption fighter has said. (BBC)

INDIA

'We Have Foiled a Blast before Diwali'

On the eve of Diwali, police on Friday said it has foiled a major terrorist plot to carry out bomb blasts in the capital by arresting a Jaish-e-Mohammad militant with three kilograms of RDX. (Times of India)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

America's Double Standard Fuels Crises

By Ramzy Baroud

The U.S. government's double standard in dealing with the intensifying nuclear crisis in North Korea further strengthens the argument that President George W. Bush's colonial designs are either exasperated by the vulnerability of his foes or deterred by their lethal preparedness. (The Japan Times)

The Veiled Woman of London: Part Two

By Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed

It seems somewhat strange that the British are debating the Niqab (the veil that covers the face), which was recently rejected by British former foreign minister Jack Straw who states that he cannot talk to woman whose face he cannot see. (Asharq Alawsat)

Worse than Saddam!

By Hassaan Haydar 

Saddam Hussein's caricature-like message to followers betrays the essence of Iraq's tragedy. The dictator has been transformed into a man of mercy, deprived of sleep because of the news of the indiscriminate killing and sectarian slaughter. (Al Hayat)

The North Korean Nightmare

By Azmi Bishara

The wild shouting and gesticulation the North Korean newscaster went through as she announced her country's testing of a nuclear bomb reminds one of the hysterical wailing that accompanied the late Kim Il-Sung to his grave. (Al Ahram Weekly)

The Black Box of Tehran

By David Ignatius

Here's a real-life international mystery: What happened in Tehran in September that torpedoed the prospect of negotiations with the United States over Iran's nuclear program? Were Western hopes of Iranian pragmatism simply an illusion? Are there other channels open for discussion with Tehran if the nuclear route is blocked? (Washington Post)

The Insider Daily Investigative Report (DIR) is a summary of major news articles and broadcasts relating to investigative news, including international terrorism and developments in Iraq. The DIR is edited daily from foreign and U.S. sources by Chris Isham, Hoda Osman and Elizabeth Sprague of the ABC News Investigative Unit. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.