Iraqi gunmen wearing military uniforms killed at least 25 people, including women and children

Iraqi gunmen wearing military uniforms killed at least 25 people, including women and children, connected to Sunni groups who fought against al-Qaeda. The gunman stormed three houses in a village in Arab Jabour, a Sunni enclave of Southern Bagdad, late last night. The victims were handcuffed and shot in the head.

At least seven people were left alive after the slaughter, with their hands tied behind their backs, according to Baghdad security spokesman Major General Qassim al-Moussawi. An official at Iraq’s Interior Ministry has confirmed that 20 men and five women and were killed by gunmen in military uniform, riding in pickup trucks.Some victims were members of the Iraqi security forces, while others were connected to the Sons of Iraq group, or Sahwa – former Sunni militants who joined forces with the government and US troops to fight al-Qaeda.

The move, known locally as the Awakening, is credited with helping turn the tide of the Iraq war by quelling insurgency in the country. Last year the US handed over control of the Awakening Councils to the Iraq government, which pays them a salary of around $300. Attacks have fallen significantly the last two years but security officials have warned that tensions resulting from the March 7 parliamentary elections could fuel a fresh wave of violence. Iraq authorities have arrested 25 people in connection with yesterday’s attack and sealed off the area to conduct a search for other suspects.

general who led the army to victory in Sri Lanka's civil war and then was roundly defeated in his bid for the presidency appeared before a court-martial

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka  The general who led the army to victory in Sri Lanka’s civil war and then was roundly defeated in his bid for the presidency appeared before a court-martial Tuesday on allegations of sedition, the military said.Military spokesman Major General Prasad Samarasinghe said Sarath Fonseka and his lawyer appeared before a three-member panel for the hearing at the country’s navy headquarters.

Samarasinghe said Fonseka faces charges that he prepared the groundwork for his presidential campaign while still in military uniform.A second charge that Fonseka violated regulations in purchasing military ware will be taken up Wednesday, he said.The military proceeding against former army chief has been condemned by the opposition and human rights groups, who accuse the government of retaliating against a man who dared challenge President Mahinda Rajapaksa in his re-election bid.

“Sarath Fonseka’s arrest continues the Rajapaksa government’s postelection crackdown on political opposition,” said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Director.Police used tear gas and batons to disperse a protest in support of Fonseka and arrested 14 people, according to a member of Fonseka’s party, the Democratic National Alliance.

The proceedings against Fonseka were shrouded in secrecy. Reporters were barred from the event, and the military did not release details of the proceedings.Fonseka’s wife, Anoma, said she opted not to attend the hearing because the charges against her husband were “a joke.”Soon after Fonseka’s arrest on Feb. 8, government officials went public with various allegations against him including a plot to assassinate Rajapaksa and capture power. But they are not among the official charges.Fonseka’s supporters have denied the charges brought against him, saying the government is punishing the retired general for challenging Rajapaksa and is attempting to cow the opposition before April 8 parliamentary elections.

Police used tear gas to disperse a protest against the court-martial in the town of Panadura, south of the capital, Colombo, according to Democratic National Alliance party member Nalindra Jayatissa.He said 14 protesters were arrested and two others were hospitalized after being beaten by police.Police spokesman Prishantha Jayakody said he would not comment until he receives a report from local police.

Rajapaksa and Fonseka were once strong allies in their campaign to defeat the Tamil Tiger rebels and end their 25-year armed campaign for an independent state.After routing the rebels last May, both were hailed as heroes by the country’s Sinhalese majority. But they quickly turned on each other. Fonseka quit the army, challenged Rajapaksa in the Jan. 26 election and lost by 18 percent.His arrest has raised concerns that Rajapaksa’s government is using all the levers of power to quash any opposition to its rule.

BAGHDAD A bomb targeting a church in northern Iraq killed two men

Shiite Muslim men

BAGHDAD  A bomb targeting a church in northern Iraq killed two men and damaged the historic building Wednesday, a day before Christmas Eve services that will be heavily guarded for fear of more attacks on the country’s Christian minority.The bomb in the city of Mosul was hidden under sacks of baking flour in a handcart left 15 yards (meters) from the Mar Toma Church, or the Church of St. Thomas, a police officer said.

The officer said the two men killed were Muslims and that five other people were injured. A hospital official confirmed the casualties.Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information to news media.

“Instead of performing Christmas Mass in this church, we will be busy removing rubble and debris,” Hazim Ragheed, a priest at the church, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.The blast damaged the wooden doors, windows, some furniture and one of the walls of the church, which is more than 1,200 years old, Ragheed said. Services will be moved out of the church, but Ragheed did not say where they would be held.

“We demand that the government put an end to these repeated attacks,” Ragheed said.The blast occurred in an area where streets have been closed to cars and trucks to protect Mosul’s dwindling Christian population.

Iraqi defense officials warned earlier in the week that intelligence reports pointed to attacks during Christmas, leading the government to step up security near churches and Christian neighborhoods.Most of the increased security will be in Baghdad, Mosul and Kirkuk, said Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari.

Christians have frequently been targeted since turmoil swept the country after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, although the attacks have ebbed with an overall drop in violence. Still, tens of thousands of Christians have fled; many who stayed were isolated in neighborhoods protected by barricades and checkpoints.A coordinated bombing campaign in 2004 targeted churches in the Iraqi capital and anti-Christian violence also flared in September 2007 after Pope Benedict XVI made comments perceived to be against Islam.

Churches, priests and businesses have been attacked by militants who denounce Christians as pro-American “crusaders.” Paulos Rahho, the Chaldean Catholic archbishop of Mosul, was found dead in March 2008 after being abducted by gunmen after a Mass.

Also Wednesday, Iraqi forces increased security around the Shiite religious observance of Ashoura, which coincides with Christmas.Insurgents have routinely targeted pilgrims on their way to the southern holy city of Karbala during Ashoura, which marks the seventh-century death of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson Hussein.More than 25,000 Iraqi police and soldiers have been assigned to protect pilgrims, said Karbala police Capt. Alaa Abbas Jaafar, a media spokesman.

Elsewhere, gunmen stormed a checkpoint Wednesday in Abu Ghraib, west of Baghdad, killing four Iraqi police officers, two police officials said.

A bomb planted on a minibus killed two people and injured five in a Shiite neighborhood in north Baghdad, police and hospital officials said. Another bomb in Fallujah targeted an Anbar University professor but missed and killed the man’s brother, police said.