Car bomb blasts south of Baghdad wreak havoc
- 12 years ago
The aftermath of a car bomb attack in the mainly Shi'ite city of Hilla, 100 kilometres south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad.
Police sources say two people were killed and 13 wounded in the blast near the local city council.
(SOUNDBITE)(Arabic) DEPUTY BABIL GOVERNOR ALI ABDUL HUSSEIN, SAYING:
"We condemn and denounce all the cowardly attacks in Babil province today and attacks in other Iraqi cities. The attacks were meant to convey a message that Iraq is still unsafe, especially as Iraq is getting ready to host the Arab summit."
Dozens of blasts and attacks hit other cities across Iraq on Thursday morning, with at least 32 people dead from a series of 10 explosions in Baghdad alone.
Here in Mussayab, 60 kilometres south of the capital, a car bomb killed one civilian and wounded 102 others, including a number of school children.
The widespread violence, which claimed the lives of at least 60 people, mainly targeted the security forces and Shi'ite neighbourhoods.
Iraqi officials had predicted Sunni insurgents would try to stoke sectarian tensions following the withdrawal of U.S. forces in December last year, and these attacks have reignited fears of a return to the violence that blighted the country in 2006 and 2007.
Iraq is due to host the annual summit of the Arab League on March 29.
Nick Rowlands, Reuters.
Police sources say two people were killed and 13 wounded in the blast near the local city council.
(SOUNDBITE)(Arabic) DEPUTY BABIL GOVERNOR ALI ABDUL HUSSEIN, SAYING:
"We condemn and denounce all the cowardly attacks in Babil province today and attacks in other Iraqi cities. The attacks were meant to convey a message that Iraq is still unsafe, especially as Iraq is getting ready to host the Arab summit."
Dozens of blasts and attacks hit other cities across Iraq on Thursday morning, with at least 32 people dead from a series of 10 explosions in Baghdad alone.
Here in Mussayab, 60 kilometres south of the capital, a car bomb killed one civilian and wounded 102 others, including a number of school children.
The widespread violence, which claimed the lives of at least 60 people, mainly targeted the security forces and Shi'ite neighbourhoods.
Iraqi officials had predicted Sunni insurgents would try to stoke sectarian tensions following the withdrawal of U.S. forces in December last year, and these attacks have reignited fears of a return to the violence that blighted the country in 2006 and 2007.
Iraq is due to host the annual summit of the Arab League on March 29.
Nick Rowlands, Reuters.