BAGHDAD: A wave of attacks, most of them car bombs targeting Shia neighbourhoods of Baghdad, killed 43 people yesterday in the latest bout of deadly violence to hit Iraq.
The bombings and shootings, which also wounded more than 100 people, came amid a protracted surge in bloodletting just months ahead of a general election that has forced Iraqi officials to appeal for international help in combating the country’s deadliest unrest since 2008. At least eight explosions, including seven car bombs, went off mostly against Shia neighbourhoods of the Iraqi capital, killing 36 people and wounding nearly 100, security and medical officials said.
They came after similarly coordinated bombings in Baghdad on Sunday killed 21 people, and pushed the death toll for November above 300.
Yesterday’s attacks struck in areas ranging from the city’s main commercial district of Karrada to the predominantly Shia neighbourhood of Shaab, as well as Sadriyah, one of Baghdad’s oldest districts.
One car bomb also went off in the Sunni-majority neighbourhood of Adhamiyah in north Baghdad, the officials said.
The blast in Karrada struck near a car dealership as Shias were gathering to mark the anniversary of the death of a venerated figure in Shia sect, when Sunni militants often step up their attacks. “We were cooking and giving food on the anniversary of the death of Imam Hussein,” said Ahmed Abu Ali, an employee of the Al Baldawi car dealership.
“Many people were gathering at the dealership and suddenly a car blew up 20 metres (yards) away,” said the 40-year-old, clad in a traditional black Arab robe. “Even if they bomb us and try to stop us, we will not stop commemorating the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein.”AFP
