Sweeping
Powers
Under
the state of emergency, the interim Iraqi government has sweeping
powers reminiscent of the authoritarian rule of ousted president
Saddam Hussein's regime.
It
allows the government to search houses and workplaces, demand arrest
warrants and restrict the movement of Iraqis and foreigners on the
mere suspicion of being involved in a crime.
The
emergency state authorizes the interim government to impose a curfew
in a certain area where there is a security threat, explosions or
unrest, and cordon off the area to conduct searches.
The
government will also be able to intercept and monitor letters,
electronic communications and telephone calls in the chaos-marred
country.
It
can, as well, freeze assets of those accused of conspiracy or anyone
linked to them, ban political meetings, close public places, clubs,
companies or limit their hours of operation and place them under
guard.
The
state of emergency allows the interim government to take speedy
military and security decisions and measures and seek the assistance
of the US-led forces for large-scale operations.
Emergency
cannot be declared for more than 60 days but the government is able to
renew the period every 30 days with a letter of approval from the
prime minister, the president and vice presidents.
US
Soldiers Killed
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Iraqis
comb through the damage after a new wave of American air strikes
on Fallujah
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Meanwhile,
two US soldiers were killed and five wounded in two separate car bomb
attacks on their convoys in Iraq on Sunday, the military said.
The
first attack occurred west of Baghdad, killing one soldier and
wounding another, it said.
"Secondary
explosions at the scene were from the cargo the convoy was
carrying," the military said in a statement.
Two
hours later in the Iraqi capital, another car bomb exploded in the
path of a convoy, killing one US soldier and injuring four others.
"All
five soldiers hit by the blast were medically evacuated to a military
treatment facility. One soldier died of wounds," the military
said.
The
latest US deaths bring to 1,124 the number of US troops killed in Iraq
since the US-led invasion in March 2003, according to an AFP tally.
Guardsmen
Slain
In
another development, 21 Iraqi guardsmen were killed Sunday in an
attack on a police station.
Around
200 fighters stormed a police station in Haditha, west of Baghdad, and
another smaller station in the nearby village of Haqlaniya.
"The
attackers disarmed the police, gathered them together and then shot
them dead," according to a local police officer.
Iraqi
police Captain Mohammed Kamal said that the US occupation forces had
imposed a curfew on the restive city, ordering its residents to stay
at home or risk being shot.
The
new attack come only 24 hours after 33 Iraqis were killed and 48
others injured in four car
bombings and attacks in Samarra, north of Baghdad.
Two
weeks ago, 49
Iraqi army recruits were similarly massacred as they
headed home in minibuses from western Iraq after completing a training
course.
