Bodyguards of Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zubayi were being interrogated over a twin-bomb attack that kept the government's top Sunni Arab in hospital for a second day.
The brazen attack inside Zubayi's heavily guarded personal compound while he was praying on the Muslim day of rest has exposed the perilous security of even top-ranking officials and underscored tensions within the Sunni community.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said he had ordered a full inquiry into the suicide and car bombing that killed nine people, including Zubayi's brother.
"We have ordered the interior ministry to conduct a detailed investigation and find who is behind the attack," he told state television.
"We have detained several of his security guards. Their interrogation is on," Brigadier General Qassim Musawi, spokesman of a massive security operation designed to quell the sectarian war engulfing Baghdad said.
The authorities were chasing after some clues that may lead to the "criminals who carried out this attack," he said without revealing how many guards were in custody.
Dhafter al-Ani, a member of parliament for the National Concord Front, the main Sunni bloc to which Zubayi belongs, charged that the suicide bomber came from the deputy prime minister's own security detail.
"The suicide bomber was one of his bodyguards and he was recruited by the Islamic State of Iraq. He was not related to Zubayi," he said.
The Islamic State, a Sunni insurgent coalition led by al-Qaeda's Iraq branch, posted a statement on the Internet claiming that it carried out Friday's bombing.
"We pray to God not to save the life of this inferior traitor who sold his religion and his people for a cheap return," it proclaimed on a Web site used by militant groups.
Suicide bombers struck across Iraq yesterday in a sharp upsurge in violence that killed more than 60 people.
In the worst attack, a man driving a truck packed with explosives blew it up outside a police station in Baghdad's volatile southern district of Dora, killing 20. The blast sent a large column of smoke into the air and rattled windows kilometers away in the center of the city.
Officers said the dead included 14 policemen and three detainees as well as three others working in the building. Another 26 were wounded. The blast caused major damage to the station, burying many victims in the rubble.
In another deadly bombing, a suicide bomber blew himself up in a sweet shop in the northern town of Tal Afar killing 10 people and wounding three, the town's mayor Najim Abdallah al-Juburi said.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned