"Progress"

In a new spasm of violence, authorities said they had found the bullet-ridden bodies of at least 75 people — 72 in Baghdad and three in Mosul.

An abandoned minibus containing 15 bodies was found Tuesday on the main road between two mostly Sunni neighborhoods in west Baghdad, not far from where another minibus containing 18 bodies was discovered last week, said Interior Ministry official Maj. Falah al-Mohammedawi.

The bodies of 17 more men in their underwear and partially covered with dirt were dug up in a field in a mostly Shiite east Baghdad suburb, he said.

At least 40 more bodies were discarded in various parts of Baghdad, including both Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods, he said.

Those killed in Baghdad included a number of bodies recovered from Sadr City, where two car bombs and four mortar rounds shattered shops and market stalls at nightfall Sunday, as residents shopped for food for their evening meals.

A spasm of violence? Will the press choke to death before it uses the words CIVIL WAR?