Iraq War timeline Dec. 5 - 11, 2005

Abid Wayyij * The bodies of nine Iraqi civilians are found on a road. Baghdad * Gunmen kidnap a French engineer, beating him and dragging him screaming from his home. Baquba * A local official working for the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq is killed by gunmen. * Two civilians are wounded by a roadside bomb targeting a US military patrol. Mahmoudiya * A US soldier is killed and three other soldiers wounded when their patrol hits a land mine. Rutba * Police find the bodies of 11 civilians dumped by the side of a highway. December 6 Arbil * Four people are killed when members of a Kurdish political party are attacked by angry mobs. Baghdad * At least 40 police officers and one US citizen are killed and 70 other people are wounded by two female suicide bombers. * At least three people are killed and 20 are wounded by a roadside bomb near a coffee shop. Dhuluiya * Iraqi and US forces kill at least four insurgents who are preparing to fire rockets. Khweylis * A guard who worked for Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari's office is killed by gunmen. Najaf * Unknown assailants fire a rocket at the offices of the party of former Iraqi prime minister Iyad Allawi. Ramadi * US forces clash with insurgents while military helicopters fire on houses possibly used by insurgents. December 7 Baghdad tThe eight-year-old son of a guard at the Saddam Hussein trial is kidnapped by gunmen. Kirkuk tThree Iraqi police officers are killed and seven other people are wounded by gunmen in police uniforms who attack a hospital. Musaib tOne Iraqi policeman is seriously wounded by a roadside bomb. Ramadi tA US Marine is killed by a makeshift bomb. December 8 Al-Anbar province * A US soldier dies from a suspected heart attack while on guard duty. Baghdad * At least 30 people are killed and 40 others wounded by a suicide bomber boarding a bus. * A Marine is killed and two others wounded by a makeshift bomb targeting their convoy. * Two Iraqi soldiers are killed in a street gun-battle with militants. December 9 Al-Imam * A father and a son are killed when gunmen, dressed in Iraqi army uniforms, raid their house. Baghdad * A US soldier is killed and 11 other US soldiers and a civilian are wounded by a suicide car bomber. * Two civilians are killed in clashes between gunmen and Iraqi security forces. * A policeman is killed and two others wounded by a roadside bomb targeting an Iraqi patrol. Balad * Iraqi police find the body of an intelligence officer shot dead the previous day by gunmen who ambushed his car. * US forces arrest a senior Iraqi police officer and five civilians in connection with an attack on a US patrol. * One Iraqi soldier is killed and 10 others, including a civilian, are wounded, in a makeshift bomb attack on their patrol. * The bodies of an Iraqi soldier and a member of the Islamic Party are found. Bohruz * Two brothers are shot dead by gunmen in their fabric shop. Ramadi * A US Army truck catches fire after a makeshift bomb hits a convoy. December 10 Baghdad * Three US soldiers are shot and killed. * A US soldier is killed by a concealed bomb. Beiji * Police find the body of an Egyptian engineer who had been abducted by gunmen. Mosul * Two civilians are killed and another wounded in a car bomb attack aimed at US forces. Najaf * Former Prime Minister Allawi's party headquarters are hit by mortar rounds that injure two party members. * A former mayor of the city survives a roadside bomb attack on his convoy that injures three of his guards. Tal Afar * Four civilians are wounded by a suicide car bomber targeting a US convoy. Tikrit * US and Iraqi soldiers detain 52 suspected insurgents. * Iraqi police find a charred body with gunshot wounds. December 11 Baghdad * Two US soldiers are killed by a concealed bomb. Beiji * Two members of the Iraqi army are killed and one wounded by gunmen. Mosul * A passerby and an infant are killed and two others wounded by gunmen who fire at the headquarters of the Turkmen Front party. * Gunmen fire on workers putting up election posters for the National Salvation Front, killing one and wounding three others. Ramadi * A US Marine is killed by a suicide car bomber. Riyadh * One Iraqi soldier is killed and another wounded by gunmen attacking a checkpoint. Samara * One Iraqi soldier is killed and two suspects are arrested when fighting erupts between joint Iraqi-US forces and gunmen. Editors' note: this timeline is only a sample and should by no means be interpreted as complete.