Summary: A suicide bomber blew himself up in a crowd of police recruits in Tikrit, killing at least 60 people and wounding more than 120 as Iraq struggles to protect itself without foreign help. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on January 18, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that Baitullah Mehsud, commander of the Pakistani Taliban until he was killed in a U.S. missile strike in August 2009, had said in March 2009 that his group was planning an attack on the White House that would “amaze” the world. In that regard, it’s notable that Osama bin Laden reportedly told planner Ramzi Binalshibh that he preferred the White House over the Capitol as a target in the attacks of 9/11. Hence, it must be assumed that the White House remains at the top of al-Qaida’s high-value target list.

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Summary: The 101st Airborne Division is seeing its worst casualties in a decade as the U.S. surge in Afghanistan turns 2010 into the deadliest year of the war for the NATO coalition. Meanwhile, twin suicide bombings rocked a government compound in Iraq’s western city of Ramadi, killing 17 people and wounding more than 50. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on December 27, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that Pat Forte fought back courageously after suffering a setback around Easter 2009 with a relapse of thymic carcinoid, sustained by his strong Christian faith, the prayers and support of friends, and excellent medical care at the University of Minnesota Masonic Cancer Center.

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Summary: Sixteen bombs went off in at least 10 neighborhoods across Iraq’s capital of Baghdad, many at restaurants and coffee shops full of civilians. The death toll climbed to 76 in the first hours following the blasts, with nearly 300 wounded. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on November 2, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that of the 364 Iraqis killed in October 2009, 155 died in two nearly simultaneous bombs targeting government buildings on Oct. 25, 2009 in downtown Baghdad — the worst attack in more than two years. Meanwhile, there were more Taliban bombings in retaliation as Pakistan continued its offensive in South Waziristan, a tribal region adjoining Afghanistan, where al-Qaida terrorists are believed to have hideouts.

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Summary: A day after the number of American troops in Iraq fell to its lowest level since the war began in 2003 — fewer than 50,000 — insurgents launched more than two dozen attacks across the country, killing at least 56 Iraqis. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on August 26, 2009 — a day four U.S. soldiers died in Aghanistan –Aubrey Immelman reported that a coordinated multiple-vehicle bomb attack in Kandahar killed more than 40 civilians in one of the largest insurgent bombings since the start of the Afghanistan war in 2001.

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Summary: A suicide bomber detonated nail-packed explosives strapped to his body among hundreds of army recruits, killing 61 and wounding 125, casting new doubt on the military capacity of Iraqi forces as U.S. troops head home. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on August 18, 2009 Aubrey Immelman provided his weekly report of U.S. military deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), compiled from U.S. Department of Defense News Releases.

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Summary: July 2010 was Iraq’s deadliest month in more than two years, according to new official figures, suggesting that a resilient insurgency is successfully taking advantage of the months of deadlock in forming a new government. The figures show that 535 people were killed last month, the highest since May 2008 when 563 died. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on August 1, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that 40 U.S. troops died in Afghanistan in July 2009, by far the heaviest monthly toll up to that point in the war. The worst previous month for U.S. forces had been September 2008, when 26 were killed.

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Summary: Twin suicide bombings kill nearly 50 people in Iraq as U.S. combat troops prepare to withdraw by the end of August. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 18, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that Iraq’s top commanders told their U.S. counterparts to “stop all joint patrols” in Baghdad, raising fresh concerns about the safety of U.S. troops in Iraq.

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Summary: Suicide bombers in a crowded Baghdad commercial district and in Saddam Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit killed at least 33 people as insurgents tried to turn a monthslong deadlock over forming a new Iraqi government to their advantage. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on June 20, 2009 Aubrey Immelman featured a Politico report that U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) was one of the House of Representatives’ biggest spenders on congressional office expenses in the first quarter of 2009. An analysis of the first-quarter 2009 Member’s Representational Allowance (office budget) reports showed Bachmann spent more than $380,000 during the three-month period — more than $100,000 more than the average first-quarter spending.

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Summary: A car bomb exploded at an open-air market in the Shiite town of Khalis, northeast of Baghdad, killing 23 people and wounding more than 50. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on May 21, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that a series of bombings hit Baghdad and the northern Iraq city of Kirkuk, killing at least 25 people (including three U.S. troops) and wounding dozens more (including nine American soldiers), one day after a car bomb exploded near a group of restaurants in a Shiite neighborhood of northwest Baghdad, killing 41 people and injuring more than 70.

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Summary: A cascade of bombings and shootings hit at least 10 cities and towns in Iraq, killing at least 100 people — mostly in Shiite areas — in Iraq’s deadliest day of 2010. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on May 10, 2009, Aubrey Immelman reported that CNN’s John Avlon, in the inaugural edition of American Morning’s “Wingnuts of the Week” segment, named U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann a charter member of the Wingnut Hall of Fame.

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