- Title: IRAQ: 21 PEOPLE KILLED IN GUERILLA ATTACKS ON FALLUJA POLICE STATION
- Date: 14th February 2004
- Summary: (W3) FALLUJA, IRAQ (FEBRUARY 14, 2004) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. WIDE OF IRAQI POLICEMAN WITH GUN IN HAND RUNNING PAST FRONT OF TARGETED POLICE STATION 0.05 2. SLV IRAQI POLICEMAN WALKING PAST 0.09 3. VARIOUS OF GUNMAN ON ROOF OF POLICE STATION 0.22 4. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE OUTSIDE BUILDING 0.29 5. VAROUS OF GUNMEN ON ROOF 0.3
- Embargoed: 29th February 2004 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: FALLUJA, IRAQ
- Country: Iraq
- Reuters ID: LVAEIJH1RV9ELU1XZ40OQ7DJW2XA
- Story Text: 21 people killed and 35 injured after gunmen with
mortars and light machineguns attacked a police station in
Falluja.
At least 21 people, including 14 police officers
were killed and 35 wounded on Saturday (February 14) when
gunmen attacked a police station and a government building
in the Iraqi town of Falluja, hospital officials said.
Police said an unknown number of prisoners escaped from
the police station during the attack which, according to
hospital officials, left 14 policemen, four civilians and
three attackers dead. The defenders were clearly
overwhelmed.
The attack, involving rockets, mortars and machineguns,
signalled a growing boldness on the part of insurgents
fighting U.S.-led occupation forces and Iraqis seen as
supporting them. Police described the weapons as more
powerful than their own Kalashnikovs.
Police were still on high alert hours after the blast,
maintaining positions on the rooftop of police stations and
government buildings.
Witnesses said parts of the city were cordoned off.
Relatives have gathered outside Falluja's hospital
where the dead and injured had been taken, and are waiting
to identify the bodies.
Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, is a hotspot
of attacks on U.S. forces and on Iraqis seen as
collaborating with them.
Guerrillas have frequently attacked U.S. troops and,
increasingly, Iraqis who cooperate with them, especially
police.
Two suicide bombs have killed at least 100 Iraqis over
the last week, mostly civilians. Rebels, supporters of
captured former president Saddam and foreign fighters, are
attempting to discourage Iraqis from supporting occupation
forces.
But U.S. troops remain a primary target in a guerrilla
war that could have broad political implications for
President George W. Bush as he faces presidential elections
in November.
A U.S. military policeman was killed in a Baghdad
suburb on Thursday (February 12) night, the 375th American
soldier to die in combat since the United States and its
allies invaded Iraq in March.
On Thursday, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East,
General John Abizaid, escaped unscathed an attack on his
convoy near Falluja.
While the violence continues almost a year after U.S.
and British forces launched an invasion to topple president
Saddam Hussein, diplomatic efforts are under way to forge a
stable post-occupation political order.
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