At least 30 die in bomb attacks across Iraq
Source: Agencies |
April 20, 2012, Friday
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BOMBS exploded in several areas of Baghdad and to the north yesterday, killing at least 30 people in the first major attacks in Iraq in nearly a month.
The violence stoked fears that insurgents were trying to undermine confidence in the Shiite-led government amid rising sectarian tensions.
In all, officials said extremists launched 12 attacks in the Iraqi capital and in the cities of Kirkuk, Samarra, Baqouba, Dibis and Taji. Mortars were fired into the northern cities of Beiji and Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, but no injuries were reported there.
Nearly 100 people were wounded in the explosions that unfolded over an hour and 15 minutes. Half of the bombs struck at security forces and government officials.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Baghdad military command spokesman Colonel Dhia al-Wakeel said they resembled those carried out by al-Qaida.
Sunni lawmaker Hamid al-Mutlaq blamed political wrangling for what he described as Iraq's deteriorating security. "We hold responsible all the government security forces and the leaders of the political process for today's attacks," he said.
The single deadliest bombing came in Dibis, near the northern city of Kirkuk, 290 kilometers north of Baghdad. A parked car exploded, killing six passers-by and wounding four others.
The day of violence began at dawn with a car that exploded in a residential area in Baqouba in eastern Iraq, killing one person and injuring 13 others. Within two hours, bombs cropped up across Baghdad, killing 12 across the Iraqi capital.
Baghdad police said roadside bombs and car explosions targeted security patrols and the nation's top health official, Health Minister Majeed Hamad Amin, as his convoy drove him to work. Amin was not hurt in the attack, but two passers-by died and six were wounded.
In Samarra, police said a suicide bomber blew up the car he was driving at a checkpoint manned by local Sahwa, the Sunni security militia created to help US forces fight al-Qaida. Five militiamen were killed.
Two explosions in Kirkuk targeted a police patrol and the head of the provincial investment council, killing three and wounding 21. The official, Falah al-Bazaz, was not hurt.
A roadside bomb in the city of Taji, just north of Baghdad, exploded as a security patrol drove by. One bystander was killed and three policemen were among six wounded.
Half an hour later and just a few kilometers away, another roadside bomb killed two soldiers as an Iraqi army patrol passed by.
The violence stoked fears that insurgents were trying to undermine confidence in the Shiite-led government amid rising sectarian tensions.
In all, officials said extremists launched 12 attacks in the Iraqi capital and in the cities of Kirkuk, Samarra, Baqouba, Dibis and Taji. Mortars were fired into the northern cities of Beiji and Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, but no injuries were reported there.
Nearly 100 people were wounded in the explosions that unfolded over an hour and 15 minutes. Half of the bombs struck at security forces and government officials.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Baghdad military command spokesman Colonel Dhia al-Wakeel said they resembled those carried out by al-Qaida.
Sunni lawmaker Hamid al-Mutlaq blamed political wrangling for what he described as Iraq's deteriorating security. "We hold responsible all the government security forces and the leaders of the political process for today's attacks," he said.
The single deadliest bombing came in Dibis, near the northern city of Kirkuk, 290 kilometers north of Baghdad. A parked car exploded, killing six passers-by and wounding four others.
The day of violence began at dawn with a car that exploded in a residential area in Baqouba in eastern Iraq, killing one person and injuring 13 others. Within two hours, bombs cropped up across Baghdad, killing 12 across the Iraqi capital.
Baghdad police said roadside bombs and car explosions targeted security patrols and the nation's top health official, Health Minister Majeed Hamad Amin, as his convoy drove him to work. Amin was not hurt in the attack, but two passers-by died and six were wounded.
In Samarra, police said a suicide bomber blew up the car he was driving at a checkpoint manned by local Sahwa, the Sunni security militia created to help US forces fight al-Qaida. Five militiamen were killed.
Two explosions in Kirkuk targeted a police patrol and the head of the provincial investment council, killing three and wounding 21. The official, Falah al-Bazaz, was not hurt.
A roadside bomb in the city of Taji, just north of Baghdad, exploded as a security patrol drove by. One bystander was killed and three policemen were among six wounded.
Half an hour later and just a few kilometers away, another roadside bomb killed two soldiers as an Iraqi army patrol passed by.
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