Two-day suicide attacks kills 138

BAGHDAD – Suicide bombers targeted Shi’ite pilgrims in the south and police recruits in central Iraq yesterday, killing almost 80 people in a stepped-up line of attack.Thursday’s bombings come one day after insurgents killed 53 people, a two-day surge of violence as Iraqi leaders try to form a coalition government.

A car bomb and gunmen killed six others in Baghdad yesterday, bringing the two-day toll to at least 138. The suicide blast yesterday near the Imam Hussein shrine in central Karbala, 80 kilometres south of Baghdad, killed 49 people and injured 52, said Karbala police Col.Razaq al-Taie.In the attack’s aftermath, a woman and an infant girl in a bright red jumpsuit lay in a pool of blood, their faces covered by a sheet.Television images showed men ferrying the wounded in pushcarts.The bomber appeared to have set off the explosion only about 30 metres from the shrine in a busy pedestrian area surrounded by shops.In Ramadi, police and hospital officials said at least 30 people were killed and 40 injured in a suicide attack on a line of police recruits.The attack took place at a police screening centre in Ramadi, an insurgent stronghold 115 kilometres west of Baghdad.At least 30 people were killed, said Mohammed al-Ani, a doctor at Ramadi General Hospital and police Captain Nassir al-Alousi.The US military did not have a casualty figure, but said that a suicide bomb exploded at near the Ramadi Glass and Ceramics Works “where screening for Iraqi police officers was taking place.”US officials said about 1 000 people had been waiting in line.Meanwhile, a roadside bomb south of Karbala hit an American convoy, and there were multiple US casualties, said Iraqi police Captain Rahim Salho.In other violence yesterday, a suicide car bomb killed three Iraqi soldiers in Baghdad, Lt.Col.Thamir al-Gharawi said, and gunmen killed three people in separate incidents, police said.The Karbala bomber detonated a vest filled with explosives and several hand grenades, al-Taie said.Small steel balls that had been packed into the suicide vest were found at the site, as was one unexploded grenade, he said.”I never thought that such a crime could happen near this holy site,” said Mohammed Saheb, who sustained a head injury.”The terrorists spare no place from their ugly deeds.This is a criminal act against faithful pilgrims.”Speaking from a hospital bed where he was being treated for burns and bruises, Akram Saleh, a vendor, said he lost consciousness after the explosion.Al-Khazraji blamed “takfiris and Saddamists” for the Karbala attack.The takfiri ideology is followed by extremist Sunni Muslims bent on killing anyone considered to be an infidel, even fellow Muslims who disagree with their doctrine.Al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is a takfiri.His group has often targeted Shi’ites.Yesterday’s attack follows a heavy day of violence Wednesday, when at least 53 people were killed around Iraq, including 32 killed by a suicide bomber at a Shi’ite funeral east of Baqouba.Politicians said the attack was an attempt to hinder a broad-based government, or force the dominant Shiite alliance into further compromises.UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan noted that the “horrendous crime” was the latest in a series of increasingly violent attacks after the December 15 elections.The year 2005 saw 2 880 terrorist attacks target Iraqi security forces and civilians, the Interior Ministry said.Some 1 225 policemen and 475 soldiers were killed, along with 4 021 civilians and 1 709 insurgents, it said.Overall, 7 430 Iraqis were killed, according to the figures.It was impossible to confirm the accuracy of the numbers because many slayings in Iraq go unreported and there are no other official figures with which to compare them.The United States military does not track civilian deaths.- Nampa-APThe suicide blast yesterday near the Imam Hussein shrine in central Karbala, 80 kilometres south of Baghdad, killed 49 people and injured 52, said Karbala police Col.Razaq al-Taie.In the attack’s aftermath, a woman and an infant girl in a bright red jumpsuit lay in a pool of blood, their faces covered by a sheet.Television images showed men ferrying the wounded in pushcarts.The bomber appeared to have set off the explosion only about 30 metres from the shrine in a busy pedestrian area surrounded by shops.In Ramadi, police and hospital officials said at least 30 people were killed and 40 injured in a suicide attack on a line of police recruits.The attack took place at a police screening centre in Ramadi, an insurgent stronghold 115 kilometres west of Baghdad.At least 30 people were killed, said Mohammed al-Ani, a doctor at Ramadi General Hospital and police Captain Nassir al-Alousi.The US military did not have a casualty figure, but said that a suicide bomb exploded at near the Ramadi Glass and Ceramics Works “where screening for Iraqi police officers was taking place.”US officials said about 1 000 people had been waiting in line.Meanwhile, a roadside bomb south of Karbala hit an American convoy, and there were multiple US casualties, said Iraqi police Captain Rahim Salho.In other violence yesterday, a suicide car bomb killed three Iraqi soldiers in Baghdad, Lt.Col.Thamir al-Gharawi said, and gunmen killed three people in separate incidents, police said.The Karbala bomber detonated a vest filled with explosives and several hand grenades, al-Taie said.Small steel balls that had been packed into the suicide vest were found at the site, as was one unexploded grenade, he said.”I never thought that such a crime could happen near this holy site,” said Mohammed Saheb, who sustained a head injury.”The terrorists spare no place from their ugly deeds.This is a criminal act against faithful pilgrims.”Speaking from a hospital bed where he was being treated for burns and bruises, Akram Saleh, a vendor, said he lost consciousness after the explosion.Al-Khazraji blamed “takfiris and Saddamists” for the Karbala attack.The takfiri ideology is followed by extremist Sunni Muslims bent on killing anyone considered to be an infidel, even fellow Muslims who disagree with their doctrine.Al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is a takfiri.His group has often targeted Shi’ites.Yesterday’s attack follows a heavy day of violence Wednesday, when at least 53 people were killed around Iraq, including 32 killed by a suicide bomber at a Shi’ite funeral east of Baqouba.Politicians said the attack was an attempt to hinder a broad-based government, or force the dominant Shiite alliance into further compromises.UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan noted that the “horrendous crime” was the latest in a series of increasingly violent attacks after the December 15 elections.The year 2005 saw 2 880 terrorist attacks target Iraqi security forces and civilians, the Interior Ministry said.Some 1 225 policemen and 475 soldiers were killed, along with 4 021 civilians and 1 709 insurgents, it said.Overall, 7 430 Iraqis were killed, according to the figures.It was impossible to confirm the accuracy of the numbers because many slayings in Iraq go unreported and there are no other official figures with which to compare them.The United States military does not track civilian deaths.- Nampa-AP