Wave of bombings in Baghdad kills 69; death toll tops 200 in latest attack surge
BAGHDAD — A wave of bombings struck outdoor markets and a restaurant in Shiite-dominated neighborhoods of Baghdad on Tuesday, killing at least 69 people, officials said — the latest in a string of attacks in and around the Iraqi capital that have left more than 200 dead in the past week.
The four separate bombings were a further challenge to the beleaguered government of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is struggling to prove that his forces can maintain security in Baghdad and elsewhere.
One of the bombings Tuesday struck an outdoor market in the heavily Shiite district of Sadr City, a frequent bombing target. In the wake of the blast, influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose support runs deep in the district named after his father, issued a statement to his followers, saying the attacks “are the clearest evidence that your government has become unable to protect and provide you with security.”
ISIS attacks
The Islamic State group later claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted to a militant website commonly used by the extremists.
Fighters with al-Sadr’s militia, Saraya Salam, deployed to the streets of Sadr City following the bombing, another indication of a lack of confidence in Iraq’s official security forces.
In an online statement, ISIS also claimed responsibility for the deadliest bombing of the day, which took place in Baghdad’s northeastern Shaab neighborhood, killing at least 34 people and wounding 75 others.
Later in the afternoon Tuesday, a suicide car bombing hit a crowded outdoor market in Sadr City, killing 18 people and wounding 35 others. Sadr City has been one of the worst-hit districts as the Islamic State group has increasingly employed terrorist attacks against Iraqi civilians far from frontline fighting. The attack came less than a week after a massive truck bomb in a crowded market here killed more than 60 and wounded over 80 on May 11.
The uptick in bombings, many claimed by ISIS, also comes as the group has lost significant chunks of territory to Iraqi ground forces over the past year. As ISIS loses ground on the front lines, Iraqi and coalition officials say the group is increasingly turning to insurgency-style attacks to distract from their losses.
Iraqi forces
On the westernmost outskirts of Iraq’s vast Anbar province, Iraqi forces entered the town of Rutba, about 240 miles west of Baghdad on Tuesday. The town sits just south of a key ISIS-controlled border crossing with neighboring Syria used to ferry fighters and supplies to ISIS-held territory in Iraq.
If successful, Rutba will be the latest victory for Iraqi forces in Anbar. Last month, Iraqi forces took back the town of Hit and in February the provincial capital Ramadi was declared fully liberated from ISIS.