Nine Iraqi Policemen Killed by Gunmen South of Baghdad

March 23, 2004
By JOHN F. BURNS

BAGHDAD, Iraq, March 23 — Nine Iraqi policemen were killed today in a small-arms attack on their convoy near Hilla, south of Baghdad, a coalition press spokesman said.

Two policemen were wounded in the attack, said the spokesman, Cpl. Craig Spowell.

Today's attack, on the road between Hilla and Musayeb, followed a spate of bombings in recent months at Iraqi police stations, which have killed scores of police officers.

Two other policemen were killed by gunmen and two were wounded today in the northern city of Kirkuk, Iraqi authorities said.

The United States command says there has been a radical change in the pattern of attacks by the anti-American underground since an American military offensive that began in November and carried through into January, when it was scaled back.

Attacks on American and allied military forces have dropped decisively to about 20 a day from about 50 in November.

At the same time there has been a corresponding increase in attacks on Iraqis, including the elements of the American-trained force of more than 200,000 Iraqis formed into the police, civil defense, border protection and other units.

Along with this, American officers say, have come attacks on Iraqi civilians, regarded as collaborators with the American occupation, including drivers and translators and other support personnel. On Monday, gunmen killed two Finnish businessmen as they drove in Baghdad.

At least three other bombings occurred close to the site of today's attack, one of them in December in the holy Shiite city of Karbala, another in February in the town of Iskandariya and, in January, an outpost a few miles from Musayeb.

Most of the police stations have been rebuilt within weeks of the attacks and American commanders say they are still receiving at least six applications from Iraqis for every post for which they recruit in the Iraqi security forces, including the police.

The recruitment flows, and the courage shown by the men already in the 70,000-man police force have been cited by American generals as one of the reasons why they are confident security across the country will be maintained effectively as the the United States progressively withdraws from major cities and towns ahead of the June 30 date for the transfer of sovereignty to an Iraqi provisional government.

Today's attack was only a few miles from the site of a fatal attack on American civilian employees of the Pentagon two weeks ago in which six Iraqi policemen have been arrested on suspicion of complicity in the murders.

Terence Neilan contributed reporting for this article from New York.

Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company