Bombs kill scores of Shiite pilgrims in Iraq
BOMBERS struck at Shiite pilgrims celebrating a religious festival in Baghdad and across Iraq yesterday, killing more than 70 people in one of the bloodiest days since the last US troops withdrew from the country last December.
The bombings appeared to be the work of Sunni insurgents who often hit Shiite targets to try to reignite the intercommunal violence that killed thousands of people in 2006-07.
With the government’s Sunni, Shiite and ethnic Kurdish parties already locked in a crisis that threatens to shatter their delicate powersharing agreement, the attacks revived fears that Iraq risked sliding back into sectarian bloodshed.
It was the worst day of violence since early January, when four bombs in Baghdad killed 73 in the latest spate of bombings on Shiite religious sites.
At least 30 people were killed when four blasts hit pilgrims across Baghdad as they marched through the city to mark the anniversary of the death of Shiite imam Moussa alKadhim, a great-grandson of the Prophet Mohammad.
One car bomb exploded outside a Baghdad Shiite mosque while another blast tore into groups of pilgrims as they rested at refreshment tents along the route to a shrine in Kadhimiya district. “A group of pilgrims were walking and passed by a tent offering food and drinks when suddenly a car exploded near them,” said Wathiq Muhana, a policeman whose patrol was stationed near the blast in central Karrada district.
“People were running away covered with blood, and bodies were scattered on the ground,” he said.
In a separate attack in the mainly Shiite southern city of Hilla, police said two simultaneous car bombs, including one detonated by a suicide bomber, exploded outside restaurants used by security forces, killing 22 people.
“When a minibus packed with policemen stopped near the restaurants, a car exploded near the bus,” said Maitham Sahib, owner of a restaurant near the blast.
Iraq’s renewed violence and political tensions will be closely watched by Sunni Gulf neighbours, and their rival, Shiite power Iran, which has meddled in Baghdad’s politics in the past as it competes for regional influence.
In total, more than 21 bombs exploded yesterday in Baghdad and the southern Iraqi cities of Kerbala, Balad, Haswa, which are predominantly Shiite areas.
While violence has fallen sharply since the height of the war that followed the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, insurgents are still potent. Large bombings generally still hit once a month, usually on security forces, government offices or Shiite targets.
But since December when the last US troops left, political tensions have also been on the rise.
Shiite Prime Minister Nuri alMaliki is fending off attempts by Sunni, Kurdish and some Shiite rivals to organise a vote of no confidence against him. Critics accuse him of failing to fulfil promises to share government posts among the blocs. Many Iraqi Sunnis fear Mr alMaliki is slowly sidelining them from the political process and trying to consolidate his own alliance’s Shiite power at their expense. Reuters