Gunmen rescue Saddam judge plot suspect

Shootings, bombings and foreign hostage takings have provided a bloody backdrop to the dramatic trial of the deposed Iraqi dictator, which has captivated the world with its harrowing tales of torture and murder.

Three policemen were killed when around 20 gunmen stormed into the main hospital in the northern oil centre of Kirkuk to free one of 12 detainees arrested last Saturday over a plot to assassinate chief investigating judge Raed Juhi.

"They freed the detainee after opening fire on the policemen guarding his room. Three of them were killed and six wounded," said Captain Salam Abdel Qader, in charge of security at the hospital.

The prisoner belonged to an Islamist cell linked to al-Qaeda that had planned to murder Juhi but was smashed by police in Kirkuk.

Persistent insecurity and attacks against security forces are exacerbating concerns not only about stability ahead of the December 15 election but also the prospects for the country after a permanent parliament is elected.

Forty police officers and recruits were killed in a twin suicide bombing at the Baghdad police academy on Tuesday, in the worst such attack on security forces in weeks.