Naseer Al-Nahr • Arab News

BAGHDAD, 25 June 2004 — Al-Qaeda spread terror in towns across Iraq yesterday, days before handover of sovereignty to Iraqis by occupation authorities, killing scores of people and injuring hundreds.

Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi’s terror network claimed responsibility for the offensive, which killed at least 89 people and injured 320 — most of them Iraqi civilians. Three American soldiers were killed and at least 12 were wounded. Assaults on Iraqi security forces were launched in Baghdad Baquba, Fallujah, Ramadi and Mosul.

“Your brothers in Jamaat Al-Tawhid wal Jihad launched a wide assault in several governorates in the country which included strikes against the apostate police agents and spies, the Iraqi Army alongside their American brothers,” it said.

“Your brothers in the martyrdom brigade also carried out several blessed operations including five in Mosul on Iraqi police centers, two in Baquba and another in Ramadi,” said the statement, indicating that suicide bombers had carried out attacks in Mosul and elsewhere.

Iraq’s Health Ministry said the casualty toll was worse than initially feared, revising the number of dead up to 89 people from 75. It said the number of wounded hit 320 from 250.

Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi blamed Zarqawi’s group for multiple car bombings that killed at least 45 people and wounded 216 in the northern city of Mosul.

But he told a news conference that “remnants of the ex-regime”, meaning Baathists loyal to ousted President Saddam Hussein, were behind attacks in Ramadi and Baquba.

However, witnesses said some of the black-clad gunmen who attacked a police station and government buildings in Baquba, 60 km northwest of Baghdad, proclaimed loyalty to Zarqawi and wore yellow headbands linking them to his group.

It appeared to be the first time members of Zarqawi’s underground network had surfaced in street combat.

“We think the Mosul incident was committed by Ansar Al-Islam, which is a parallel organization to the infidel Zarqawi,” Allawi said of the bombings in the northern city.

The heaviest fighting raged in Baquba, where American tanks and aircraft drove off the black-clad fighters who had seized a government office complex and roamed the deserted streets brandishing rocket launchers and automatic weapons.

Two American soldiers died in the Baquba fighting, the 1st Infantry Division said. US aircraft dropped three 500-pound (226 kilogram) bombs on hideouts of fighters near the soccer stadium, division spokesman Maj. Neal O’Brien said.

But the bloodiest attacks were in Mosul, the country’s northern metropolis often touted as a success story in restoring order in Iraq.

At least four car bombs rocked the Iraqi Police Academy, two police stations and the Al-Jumhuri hospital, killing 45 people, including one American soldier.

Mosul’s governor imposed a 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, and the city television station urged people to stay home for the “general good.” US troops recaptured the Sheikh Fathi police station in Mosul in a hail of gunfire, and Iraqi troops raided a nearby mosque used by the fighters, the US military said.

A US Marine Cobra helicopter gunship made an emergency landing near Fallujah but the crew escaped injury, the US command said.

Many fighters wore headbands marked “Saraya Al-Tawhid wal Jihad” (Battalions of Unification and Holy War), a name that closely resembles Zarqawi’s Jamaat Al-Tawhid wal Jihad group. They handed out leaflets warning Iraqis not to work with US-led occupation authorities. “The flesh of collaborators is tastier than that of Americans,” the leaflets said.

Zarqawi’s group has claimed many attacks in Iraq, including this week’s beheading of a South Korean hostage. The United States has offered a $10 million reward for Zarqawi’s capture.

American and Iraqi officials insisted that the power transfer would proceed as planned on June 30. Coalition officials warned that insurgents could follow their raids with escalated attacks in the heart of Baghdad in the coming days.

Yesterday, the coalition formally turned over full authority of the last 11 government ministries to Iraqi officials. Iraqis took over management of the other 15 ministries earlier this month.

During the handover ceremony, Prime Minister Allawi said the latest attacks were meant “to foil the democratic process” but that the situation was under control.

— Additional input from agencies