61 Iraqi Army recruits die in blast

As US forces draw down their combat troops in Iraq on a timetable withdrawal plan, Iraqis try to expand the number of their own forces. Today, 61 Iraqis paid for their desire to protect their own country with their lives as they stood in line with applications for enlistment (S&S/AP link);

Bodies of bloodied young men, some still clutching job applications in their hands, were scattered on the ground outside the military headquarters in central Baghdad. Some of the estimated 1,000 men who had gathered there before dawn for a good spot in line were so desperate for work they returned hours after being treated at hospitals for injuries in the attack.

Though Iraq’s military and police recruiting centers have been attacked repeatedly, there was virtually no security provided for the hundreds of men seeking to hand in applications on the last day they were being accepted at the headquarters for the Iraqi army’s 11th Division.

The bomber, it appears, simply walked up and joined the applicants. Witnesses said he approached an officer collecting I.D. cards and set off a blast that split his own body in two.

Of course, I’m sure this has nothing to do with timetable withdrawals. I mean, the Democrats have been pushing for a schedule for years, so they must be right just based on their persistence, right?

Category: Terror War