U.S. WARPLANES POUND BAGHDAD. 9 U.S. SOLDIERS KILLED. 151 THOUSAND IRAQI CIVILIANS KILLED IN FIRST THREE YEARS SINCE U.S. INVADED AND OCCUPIED IRAQ

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By Peter Graff1 hour, 24 minutes ago

U.S. warplanes launched their biggest air strike in Iraq since at least 2006 on Thursday, bombarding date palm groves on Baghdad's southern outskirts with more than 40,000 pounds of bombs in a matter of minutes.

Two B-1 bombers and four F-16 fighter jets struck more than 40 al Qaeda targets in three zones of Arab Jabour, a lush district just south of the capital that has become a haven for fighters driven out of other areas.

"Thirty-eight bombs were dropped within the first 10 minutes, with a total tonnage of 40,000 pounds," the military said in a statement. "Each bomber passed over twice and the F-16s followed to complete the set."

The attack formed part of Operation Phantom Phoenix, a major countrywide offensive against al Qaeda guerrillas that U.S. forces announced this week.

TOLL ON US SOLDIERS

The offensive has taken its toll on American forces as well. After a month in which the rate of U.S.-led coalition deaths fell to fewer than one per day for the first time since 2004, nine American soldiers were killed in 48 hours.

Gates said the deaths were a "stark reminder of the work that remains to be done."
Six American soldiers were killed on Wednesday by an explosion in a booby-trapped house in Diyala province, and three others were killed on Tuesday in Salahuddin province, two northern areas where U.S. forces say al Qaeda has regrouped.

The United Nations' World Health Organization released figures on Wednesday estimating about 151,000 Iraqi civilians had died violently in Iraq in the war's first three years, with the exact figure falling between 104,000 and 223,000.

The WHO figure, based on a survey of 10,000 Iraqi households, does not include deaths after June 2006. The 12 months that followed were the deadliest year of the war.