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Abu Ghraib prison attacked; 56 injured
Just when American media are making a big deal about March having the fewest casualties in months, a well-organized and full-scale attack is mounted by rebels on the highly symbolic Abu Ghraib prision in Baghdad. Even if the spectre of Abu Ghraib has faded from the collective memory of average Americans, it seems the Iraqi resistance still remembers.
Anti-occupation fighters attacked the Abu Ghraib prison injuring 44 U.S. forces and 12 prisoners.
Anti-occupation fighters attacked the Abu Ghraib prison injuring 44 U.S. forces and 12 prisoners, the U.S. military said Sunday.
The attack followed a day of sporadic violence as six people were killed elsewhere in Iraq following a period of declining attacks that had raised hopes the violence is on the wane.
Some 40 rebels fired rocket-propelled grenades and set off two car bombs at the infamous prison as darkness fell Saturday night, 1st Lt. Adam Rondeau said. Soldiers and Marines stationed at the detention facility responded, and the resulting clash and gunfight lasted about 40 minutes.
“This was obviously a very well-organized attack and a very big attack,” Rondeau said.
On Sunday, U.S. military officials raised the casualty toll from 20 to 44 service members, and said some of the injuries were serious.
The attack comes in the wake of officials saying that overall violence has been declining in Iraq, though they also noted that the anti-occupation fighters appeared to be focusing their efforts on bigger, better organized operations.
It wasn’t immediately known if any of those carrying out the attack were arrested or suffered casualties.
Abu Ghraib was at the center of a prisoner abuse scandal that broke out in 2004 when pictures showing soldiers piling naked inmates in a pyramid and humiliating them sexually became public. The resulting scandal tarnished the military’s image worldwide and sparked investigations of detainee abuses.
Early Saturday gunmen opened fire from a car in Baghdad, killing local official Hassib Zamil outside of the Education Ministry offices in the Sadr City neighborhood.
While in the central city of Khan Bani Saad, a car bomb killed five people, including four police officers on patrol. Two police officers and three civilians also were wounded, provincial police Col. Mudafar al-Jubori said.
The U.S. military reported a car bomb injured six Iraqis and set a house on fire in the northern city of Mosul. The attack occured as coalition soldiers, acting on a citizens’ tip, were arriving to investigate, the U.S. military said.
It was also reported that a U.S. Marine was killed by enemy fire while conducting security operations in Ramadi on Friday.
Um grupo da Al Qaeda diz ser responsável pelo ataque de sábado contra a prisão de Abu Ghraib no Iraque. Os militares dos Estados Unidos da América divulgaram relatórios que dizem que 44 soldados americanos e 12 prisioneiros iraquianos foram feridos, alguns com muita gravidade.

O ataque ocorreu no fim do dia e início da noite. Outros ataques violentos também têm ocorrido nos últimos dias em outros pontos do país.

Uma declaração colocada num sítio da internet por extremistas islâmicos no domingo, diz:"Seus irmãos da organização Al Qaeda, pela Guerra Santa, lançaram no Iraque um ataque bem planejado contra a prisão de Abu Ghraib, onde estão detidos muçulmanos, homens e mulheres." 

Jornalistas da GNN dizem que o comandante do exército americano primeiro-tenente Adam Rondeau disse "Este foi obviamente um ataque muito bem organizado e bastante grande."