Baghdad:Car bomb
blasts and other explosionstore through mainly Shiite districts around Baghdad
during morning rush hour today in a day of violence that killed at least 74,
intensifying worries about Iraq's ability to tame the spiralling mayhem
gripping the country. It was the latest set of large-scale sectarian attacks to
hit Iraq, even as the government went on 'high alert' in case a possible
Western strike in neighbouring Syria increases Iraq's turmoil. A relentless
wave of killing has left thousands dead since April in the country's worst
spate of bloodshed since 2008. The surge in violence raises fears that Iraq is
hurtling back toward the widespread sectarian killing that peaked in2006 and
2007, when the country was teetering on the edge of civil war. Most of today's
attacks happened within minutes of each ther as people headed to work or were
out shopping early in the day.Insurgents unleashed explosives-laden cars, suicide bombers and other bombs that targeted parking lots,
outdoor markets and restaurants in predominantly Shiite
neighbourhoods of Baghdad, officials said. A military convoy was hit
south of
the capital. Security forces sealed off the blast scenes as ambulances raced to pick up the wounded. The twisted wreckage of cars littered the pavement while cleaners and shop owners brushed away debris. At one restaurant, the floor was stained with blood and dishes were scattered on plastic tables.
the capital. Security forces sealed off the blast scenes as ambulances raced to pick up the wounded. The twisted wreckage of cars littered the pavement while cleaners and shop owners brushed away debris. At one restaurant, the floor was stained with blood and dishes were scattered on plastic tables.
'What sin have those innocent people committed?' asked Ahmed Passim, who witnessed one of the explosions in
Baghdad's Hurriyah neighbourhood. 'We hold the government
responsible.' The northern neighbourhood of Kazimiyah, home to a prominent Shiite shrine, was among the worst hit. Two
bombs went off in a parking lot, followed by a suicide car
bomber who struck onlookers who had gathered at the scene. Police said the attack killed 10 people and wounded 27.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks, but they bore the hallmarks of the Iraqi branch of al-Qaida, which operates in Iraq under the name the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The group frequently targets Shiites, which it considers heretics, and carries out coordinated bombings in an attempt
to incite sectarian strife. Charles Lister, an analyst at IHS Jane's Terrorism and
Insurgency Center, said the group is increasingly showing 'huge confidence and military capability.' 'Both the increasing frequency, and statistically, the
increasing deadliness of (their) coordinated nationwide bombings in Iraq underlines the extent of their operational reach and the huge depth of their resources,' he said. (AP)
