Bomb Explodes Near U.S. Patrol in Iraq

Source: New York Times

Bomb Explodes Near U.S. Patrol in Iraq

By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr.
Published: January 30, 2008
BAGHDAD — A suicide car bomb exploded near an American patrol in the northern city of Mosul on Tuesday, a day after Sunni Arab guerrillas killed five American soldiers during an ambush on a convoy in Mosul.

There were no American casualties in the latest attack, but one Iraqi was killed and 15 others were wounded, the military said in a statement. The attack is the latest sign that the main front of the insurgency has shifted to northern Iraq.

On Monday, the Sunni Arab guerrillas ambushed the American convoy with a roadside bomb, then sprayed survivors with machine-gun fire from perches in a nearby mosque.

It was the second devastating attack on United States forces this month, bringing the number of fatalities to 36 this year. While American deaths have fallen sharply in Baghdad and Anbar Province, they have not slowed in the north. Three-fifths of the American service members killed this year were in three provinces dominated by Sunni Arabs north of Baghdad.

Three weeks ago, a house rigged with explosives killed six soldiers in Diyala Province.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/30/world/middleeast/30baghdad.html?_r=1&ref=middleeast&oref=slogin