Iraq car bombs kill 56 people

BAGHDAD – Car bombs killed at least 56 people in Iraq on Sunday as Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki prepared for a White House visit expected to focus on easing violence that has raised doubts over his reconciliation efforts.

A blast killed 36 civilians in a Shi’ite district of Baghdad a day after an inaugural meeting to start reconciling Iraq’s rival factions produced little tangible result. Another car bomb exploded in the northern city of Kirkuk, killing at least 20 civilians outside a court house, police and witnesses said.The Baghdad bomb, near a police station and open-air market, was in the Sadr City neighbourhood, a poor area that is a stronghold of Shi’ite militias.Shattered vehicles and stalls showed the power of the latest blast.Blood lay in pools.Some witnesses spoke of a suicide bomber driving a mini van but police said the cause was unclear.Three weeks ago, a car bomb at a market in the same area killed about 60 people, in one of several bloody incidents this month that have raised fears of civil war.The latest violence came a day after a meeting of Iraq’s sects and ethnic groups that was intended to project an image of unity produced little more than talk.There were also heavy clashes in the district overnight between the Mehdi Army of radical Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and US-led forces, residents and police said.The US military said in a statement that Iraqi troops raided a site in mainly Shi’ite eastern Baghdad targeting two people believed to be involved in “death squads” – a term usually applied to Shi’ite militia activity.It said eight people were detained after a battle involving machine guns and grenades and that two Iraqi hostages were freed.Two other people were arrested in a similar raid in northwestern Baghdad, the military said.Underscoring the complexities or trying to stabilise Iraq, Sadr, who has led two revolts against US and Iraq forces, is also part of Maliki’s dominant Shi’ite Alliance.On Saturday, leaders held the inaugural meeting of the Higher Committee for Dialogue and National Reconciliation, in a show of sectarian and ethnic solidarity before Maliki’s visit to Washington for talks with US President George W.Bush.But many remain pessimistic about the chances of tackling rising bloodshed.The biggest party from the Sunni Arab community, which forms the backbone of a raging insurgency against a Shi’ite-led, US-backed government, did not join the talks.Bush is also under pressure to show progress in Iraq, clearing the way for US troop cuts, as his Republicans face elections in November with their control of Congress at stake.US commanders have said they are considering sending more troops to the capital, whose 7 million people represent a rich and volatile mixture of all of Iraq’s communities.Iraqi leaders have admitted they despair of being able to avert all-out civil war.”Iraq as a political project is finished,” a top government official told Reuters.Iraqi and US officials now believe sectarian militias are killing more Iraqis and pose a greater security threat than the insurgency, though this is still a major destabilising force.The US military said its troops, backed by Iraqi forces and police, killed 15 fighters in a three-hour gun battle near a Shi’ite mosque at Mussayab, south of Baghdad.Two US soldiers were also killed around Baghdad on Saturday.Bahaa al-Araji, a parliamentarian and Sadr supporter, said 14 Mehdi Army fighters were killed in those clashes.”We call on the occupying forces to stop these acts or else all Iraqi people will strike them,” he told a news conference.Araji also said that Mehdi Army fighters detained what he called terrorists in the Shi’ite town of Mahmudiya.- Nampa-ReutersAnother car bomb exploded in the northern city of Kirkuk, killing at least 20 civilians outside a court house, police and witnesses said.The Baghdad bomb, near a police station and open-air market, was in the Sadr City neighbourhood, a poor area that is a stronghold of Shi’ite militias.Shattered vehicles and stalls showed the power of the latest blast.Blood lay in pools.Some witnesses spoke of a suicide bomber driving a mini van but police said the cause was unclear.Three weeks ago, a car bomb at a market in the same area killed about 60 people, in one of several bloody incidents this month that have raised fears of civil war.The latest violence came a day after a meeting of Iraq’s sects and ethnic groups that was intended to project an image of unity produced little more than talk.There were also heavy clashes in the district overnight between the Mehdi Army of radical Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and US-led forces, residents and police said.The US military said in a statement that Iraqi troops raided a site in mainly Shi’ite eastern Baghdad targeting two people believed to be involved in “death squads” – a term usually applied to Shi’ite militia activity.It said eight people were detained after a battle involving machine guns and grenades and that two Iraqi hostages were freed.Two other people were arrested in a similar raid in northwestern Baghdad, the military said.Underscoring the complexities or trying to stabilise Iraq, Sadr, who has led two revolts against US and Iraq forces, is also part of Maliki’s dominant Shi’ite Alliance.On Saturday, leaders held the inaugural meeting of the Higher Committee for Dialogue and National Reconciliation, in a show of sectarian and ethnic solidarity before Maliki’s visit to Washington for talks with US President George W.Bush.But many remain pessimistic about the chances of tackling rising bloodshed.The biggest party from the Sunni Arab community, which forms the backbone of a raging insurgency against a Shi’ite-led, US-backed government, did not join the talks.Bush is also under pressure to show progress in Iraq, clearing the way for US troop cuts, as his Republicans face elections in November with their control of Congress at stake.US commanders have said they are considering sending more troops to the capital, whose 7 million people represent a rich and volatile mixture of all of Iraq’s communities.Iraqi leaders have admitted they despair of being able to avert all-out civil war.”Iraq as a political project is finished,” a top government official told Reuters.Iraqi and US officials now believe sectarian militias are killing more Iraqis and pose a greater security threat than the insurgency, though this is still a major destabilising force.The US military said its troops, backed by Iraqi forces and police, killed 15 fighters in a three-hour gun battle near a Shi’ite mosque at Mussayab, south of Baghdad.Two US soldiers were also killed around Baghdad on Saturday.Bahaa al-Araji, a parliamentarian and Sadr supporter, said 14 Mehdi Army fighters were killed in those clashes.”We call on the occupying forces to stop these acts or else all Iraqi people will strike them,” he told a news conference.Araji also said that Mehdi Army fighters detained what he called terrorists in the Shi’ite town of Mahmudiya.- Nampa-Reuters