Two American soldiers have been killed in northern Iraq, and Iraqis in Baghdad fear there will be a new wave of attacks sometime in the next few days.
The U.S. military has confirmed that the American soldiers were killed and two others wounded Saturday in a bomb attack in the northern Iraqi town of Mosul.
Bombs were detonated in front of a police station in the city as a patrol from the 101st Airborne Division was driving by.
In the meantime, Iraqis in Baghdad were on edge following widespread rumors of days of resistance that were to begin Saturday marking the six-month anniversary of President Bush's May 1 declaration that major combat operations in Iraq had ended.
Police stations, hotels, schools and even mosques were rumored to be on a list of targets. The U.S. consular office in Baghdad, acknowledging the rumors, issued a warning for Americans to be on extra alert for the next several days.
Late Friday, the consular office issued a warning that hotels in Baghdad's al-Hamra district were in imminent threat of terrorist attacks, especially for the next two weeks.
Schools in Baghdad Saturday were empty of students. But school principal Lyla Kadoun was angry with parents for what she said was giving in to the terrorists.
Ms. Kadoun says she is very upset with the parents for not bringing their children to school. She says parents have to be strong and not worry about rumors or threats. Otherwise, she says, the terrorists will win.
This little Iraqi boy named Mahdi said he was afraid to go to school Saturday.
Mahdi says he heard he shouldn't go to school because it might blow up. He says he is scared and won't return to school unless the teachers tell him to.
Thuraya is a nine-year-old. She, too, is afraid.
Thuraya says she heard bad men were planting bombs at her school and she is very afraid it's going to explode.
Security at Baghdad University was very tight Saturday. There were extra police and cement barricades, and barbed wire was installed at entry points around the campus.
Saturday, Iraqi police set up vehicle checkpoints throughout Baghdad searching for weapons and explosive devices.
The increased security throughout Baghdad comes as the foreign staff members of the United Nations and the Red Cross leave Iraq for what have been described as consultations. The decision to pull out foreign staff members was made after the Red Cross headquarters in Baghdad was attacked by a suicide bomber last Monday.
