the United States is scheduled to hand over sovereignty amid growing concern over terrorism and Muslim extremism, which left more than 100 people dead this week alone.
"What I think everybody has agreed to is that elections are terribly important," said U.N. Special Representative Lakhdar Brahimi in Baghdad, where residents are still coping with the aftermath of two suicide bombs that killed many Iraqis, mostly civilians.
A car bomb exploded in the early hours of Baghdad’s Wednesday morning, killing at least 46 people in the second such bombing in Iraq in less than 24 hours. The citizens of Baghdad were awakened by the massive explosion, less than a day after a car bomb killed more than 50 people south of the capital at a police station.
Reporters said a giant truck bomb exploded outside an Iraqi police station in a heavily Shi’ite city south of Baghdad, killing about 50 people and wounding another 75.
WASHINGTON CONCERNED
United States officials have warned of a possible increase in sectarian violence, after revelations that foreign fighters linked with al-Qaida Iraqi insurgents loyal to Saddam Hussein plan to destabilize Iraq. The country’s Christian minority. which Muslim militants see as collaborating with the American-led coalition, has also been suffering under this attacks.
Last month four Christian Iraqi women were killed on their way to work at an American military base when gunmen raked their minibus with gunfire 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of Baghdad, BosNewsLife monitored.
Among those killed was Ashkik Varojan, who boarded the bus having decided to hand in her resignation, rather than live in fear of reprisals for cooperating with the United States-led coalition, human rights watch dog Barnabas Fund said.
DAUGHTER FAINTS
"Necessity had driven her to work to support her paralyzed husband and four children. On hearing the news of her death, Anjel, her 20 year old daughter fainted with grief."
There have been scores of other deadly attacks against Christians, ANS established. Security problems have made it almost impossible for the American led forces to create conditions for calm and democratic elections, U.N. and other officials.
In a further sign of tension, the U.S. military said Friday, February 13, that an American military policeman was killed on patrol in Baghdad’s Abu Ghraib suburb the night before, Reuters news agency reported. He was the 375th American soldier to die in combat since the US and its allies invaded Iraq in March, raising fears that Iraq will resemble the first stages of the war against Vietnam.
Security aside, Iraq also needs to put electoral registers and laws in place before holding polls, analysts say. In New York, diplomats said they expected the UN to propose an alternative way to establish a government the Iraqis would see as legitimate, instead of the caucus system or premature elections, several news reports claimed.
