Sign InRegister

Bodies of 15 Sunnis found in Baghdad

Iraq bombings kill 8, wound 90

• Hussein trial tape talks about destroying farms

• Bush visits Marines, cheers Iraq

SPECIAL REPORT

• Interactive: Who's who in Iraq

• Interactive: Sectarian divide

• Timeline: Bloodiest days for civilians

• Coalition Casualties

• Special Report

YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The bodies of 15 men believed to be Sunni Muslims have been found in the Abu Ghraib section of Baghdad, police said Monday.

The group reportedly was heading to Iraq's Anbar province to seek work with Iraqi security forces, police said.

The men, whose bodies were found in two vehicles on Sunday, all appeared to have died from gunshots.

Police said the men were Sunnis based on the surnames on the victims' IDs.

Widespread killings described by witnesses as sectarian in nature have raised fears that Iraq could descend into civil war.

Under Saddam Hussein, the minority Sunni Muslims wielded power, often through violence against Shiites and Kurds. In the current government, the Sunnis have a minority voice, and many officials think the insurgency is largely fueled by disaffected Sunnis.

Eight bomb blasts

Three car bombs in different areas of the Iraqi capital on Monday killed at least eight people and wounded 50 others, police said Monday.

Four other Baghdad car bombs and a roadside bomb elsewhere wounded 40 people, authorities said.

The attacks began at 9 a.m. (1 a.m. ET) south of Baghdad in Mahmoudiya, where a roadside bomb detonated near an Iraqi army patrol, wounding nine people, six of them soldiers.

A half hour later in northern Baghdad, near Medical City, a car bomb blast killed three people and wounded 25.

Two other car bombs went off near Mustansariya University, killing five people and wounding 25, including some students.

A fourth car bomb detonated in southern Baghdad's Tahariyat square after midday, wounding 15 civilians, police said.

Two other car bombs went off 10 minutes apart in a southeastern neighborhood, wounding four police commandos and five civilians.

In the upscale Mansour neighborhood, a seventh car bomb targeted a police patrol, wounding three officers and four bystanders at about 2:55 p.m., police said.

Meanwhile, in Hussein's trial on Monday, prosecutors submitted new evidence -- a CD they said was a recording of a telephone conversation between the former Iraqi leader and a co-defendant.

The voices on the recording discussed destroying orchards in Dujail in retaliation for an assassination attempt against Hussein that preceded the killing of 148 Shiite males in the town of Dujail in 1982. (Full story)

The trial has adjourned until May 15.

Other developments

A retired CIA official has accused the Bush administration of ignoring intelligence indicating that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and no active nuclear program before the United States-led coalition invaded it, CBS News reported Sunday. (Full story)

Eight U.S. soldiers were killed over the weekend, bringing the number of U.S. service members and military civilians killed in the Iraq war to 2,389. There are about 132,000 U.S. service members in Iraq. (Full story)

Standing still is rarely an option in the insurgent-plagued metropolis of Ramadi, U.S. Marines there say, adding that the city is beset by roadside bombs, rocket fire and the worst sniper threat on the planet. "Every time we go out, we run," said 2nd Lt. Brian Wilson, a 24-year-old platoon commander from Columbia, South Carolina. "If you stand still, you WILL get shot at." (Full story)

CNN's Arwa Damon and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.

Story Tools

Subscribe to Time for $1.99

Home Page

Get up-to-the minute news from CNN

CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more.

Home Page

Get up-to-the minute news from CNN

CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more.