The New Nation - Internet Edition

America loses 2 more soldiers in Iraq: 41 killed in US air strikes, assaults in Baghdad

AFP, Baghdad

Roadside bomb attacks on their vehicles have killed two US troops in separate incidents in Iraq, the US military announced on Monday.

A soldier died of wounds sustained when his vehicle was hit on Sunday by a bomb in northern Baghdad, a military statement said without giving the exact location.

US and Iraqi forces have been battling Shiite militiamen for the past five days in eastern and northern Baghdad.

A marine was killed, meanwhile, when his vehicle was attacked "by an enemy force with an improvised explosive device" in western Anbar province on Saturday, a separate statement said.

Anbar, once a stronghold of Al-Qaeda, has been relatively peaceful in recent months after Sunni tribal leaders formed a coalition against the jihadists and chased them out of the province but US commanders warn that no part of Iraq is free from attack.

The latest deaths bring the US military's losses in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion to 4,010, according to an AFP tally based on the independent website icasualties.org.

Meanwhile, US air strikes and military assaults have killed 41 "criminals" in Baghdad, including 25 who died when an alleged mortar team was bombed, the American military announced on Monday.

The killings occurred on Sunday in eastern and northeastern Baghdad where US and Iraqi forces have been battling the Mahdi Army militia of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr since Tuesday.

The deaths push the toll from six days of fighting between security forces and Shiite militiamen in Baghdad, the southern city of Basra and several other Shiite areas to more than 320, at least 140 of these in Baghdad.

On Sunday, Sadr ordered his fighters off the streets while the government agreed not to pursue those involved in the fighting provided they stowed their weapons.

A US military statement said American soldiers were hunting for the launch site of a rocket or mortar attack in eastern Baghdad on Sunday when their Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb, injuring one soldier. While soldiers were securing the area they found a second bomb nearby. They were then attacked with mortars or rockets, rocket propelled grenades and small-arms fire from a nearby house.

"A mortar team was spotted on the roof of the house where the attack was coming from," the statement said, adding that air support was called in and the house bombed, killing "25 criminals."

In northeast Baghdad, another eight "criminals" were killed when they attacked US soldiers, a separate statement said.

Among those who died were two who were killed when US attack helicopters fired two Hellfire missiles at fighters who launched an attack on soldiers manning a checkpoint in Kadhimiyah neighbourhood, a Mahdi Army stronghold.

Another eight "criminals" were killed in a series of other attacks on US forces Sunday, a third statement said.

Sadr in a statement on Sunday distanced himself from those "who carry weapons and target the government, the offices of the government and its parties".

42 killed in Lankan clashes

AFP, Colombo

A series of clashes over the weekend between Sri Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger rebels left at least 39 separatists and three soldiers dead, the defence ministry said Monday.

Government troops shot dead the rebels in the north during two days of fighting that ended Sunday, the ministry said, adding 15 soldiers were injured.

There was no immediate comment from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whose armed struggle for an independent state for minority Tamils in the island's north and east have left tens of thousands dead since 1972.

Security forces clashed with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the northern district of Vavuniya, Mannar and Jaffna on Saturday, killing 33 rebels, the defence ministry said.

The military said three soldiers died and at least 15 were injured in weekend fighting.

Sri Lankan airforce fighter jets on Sunday carried out sorties over a suspected rebel sea base in the guerrilla-controlled areas in the north, the defence ministry said.

There was no immediate comment from the LTTE, who have waged a fight for autonomy in the island's north and east since 1972. Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the conflict.

However, a pro-rebel website, Tamilnet.com, said the guerrillas had beaten back an army offensive on Saturday in Vavuniya district.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan troops have been hit by tropical illnesses as a result of heavy rains and floods in the north. Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said urgent measures had been taken to combat the problem.

The Sunday Times newspaper said that about 500 troops affected by dengue fever and the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus were being treated at hospitals in the island's northeast.

Syria ready in case of US military action

AFP, Damascus

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said on Sunday that Damascus was prepared for all scenarios in its worsening relationship with Washington, including the use of US military force. "A prudent person must make all his calculations, especially when we have to deal with an administration which knows how to strike but does not know how to withdraw," Muallem told reporters at the end of an Arab summit in Damascus. He was referring to Iraq where almost 160,000 American troops are stationed five years after invading the country to overthrow president Saddam Hussein. More than 4,000 US soldiers have died since. Muallem was responding to a question over whether Damascus feared "a US strike against Syria or Iran" if US diplomatic efforts fail to isolate Syria. "We hope that this will not happen. We hope for dialogue and an accord in order to avoid more American destruction to our region, and more deaths to the Americans," he added. The United States has been trying to isolate Syria which it accuses of backing the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon and radical Palestinian groups. Half of the leaders of the 22-member Arab League, including the heads of state of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, boycotted the two-day Damascus summit, blaming Syria for Lebanon's protracted political crisis. Washington, which also accuses Damascus of meddling in Iraq, had urged its allies to think twice before attending the summit, charges that Syria has been blocking Lebanon's presidential election.

Hamas chief invites Abbas for talks in Gaza

AFP, London

Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal invited Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to Gaza for unconditional talks on the two factions' divisions, in a television interview Monday. He also told British broadcaster Sky News that Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, captured by Palestinian militants in June 2006, is still alive and being treated well. "We invite Mr Mahmud Abbas to come to Gaza to talk directly without any conditionst to work together to find a solution to the problems in Gaza and the West Bank," Meshaal said, speaking from an undisclosed location in Damascus. The aim of the talks would be "get back our Palestinian union and find the reasons for our problems and to solve the security problem," he added. The invitation comes after rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Abbas's Fatah reached a Yemeni-brokered deal on March 23 to open their first direct talks since the Islamists seized control of the Gaza Strip nine months ago. But within hours of signing that agreement, the two bitter rivals bickered over its meaning, with Hamas focusing on the first part of the statement while Fatah highlighted the second as a precondition for any talks. And the day after the deal was struck, a senior Israeli official warned Abbas against striking a reconciliation deal with Hamas, saying it would effectively sink faltering Middle East peace talks. The Hamas seizure of Gaza effectively split the Palestinian territories into two separate entities with the Islamists controlling the impoverished coastal strip and Abbas ruling the occupied West Bank.

Arab summit says peace offer is under review with Israel

Reuters, Damascus

An Arab summit, subdued in the absence of leaders critical of Syria, told Israel on Sunday Arab countries would review an Arab peace offer unless the Jewish state changes its behavior. bArab leaders sent the warning at the end of the two-day meeting in the Syrian capital Damascus. It did not say what options were under consideration or when the review would take place. "For the Arab side to continue to offer the Arab peace initiative is tied to Israel executing its commitments in the framework of international resolutions to achieve peace in the region," a Damascus Declaration said. The Arab initiative of 2002 offers Israel peace and normal relations with all Arab countries in return for withdrawal from all territory captured in the 1967 war. Successive Israeli governments have either ignored or rejected the offer, which would require Israel to dismantle settlements which house hundreds of thousands of Jews. The statement, read by Arab League chief Amr Moussa, added: "(The Arab heads of state decided) to evaluate and review Arab strategies and the plan of action regarding reviving the peace process as a prelude to decide on next Arab moves." Although it did not set a time frame, Moussa told a news conference later that Arab foreign ministers could start a review in the middle of the year.

China's premier invites Taiwan for 'big-issue' talks

AFP, Beijing

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has invited Taiwan to hold "big-issue" talks on establishing direct transport links and signing a peace agreement, state media reported Monday. Wen, who was speaking to reporters during a visit to Laos, extended the invitation in his first public remarks on Taiwan after the more China-friendly of two presidential candidates won an election on the island this month.

"(What we can talk about) include big issues, such as the implementation of the Three Links and the end of cross-strait hostility by reaching a peace agreement," Wen was quoted as saying by China National Radio's website. The "Three Links" refer to direct transport, trade and postal links, something that has not yet materialised because of continuing tensions between the two sides who split after a civil war in 1949. China considers Taiwan part of its territory, and has vowed to aim for eventual reunification, even if it means war. The Chinese premier said talks should take place on the basis of the so-called "1992 consensus" which lets both parties agree there is only one China, but leaves the precise definition of the term to each. Observers said Wen's remarks were significant due to their timing, after the landslide victory in Taiwan's presidential election for opposition candidate Ma Ying-jeou. "This is certainly an attempt to improve the atmosphere. It's a soft approach to try to initiate political negotiations," said Joseph Cheng, a China watcher at City University of Hong Kong.