A suicide bomber on a bicycle blew himself up, killing at least 28 people and wounding 58 more outside a police academy in the Iraqi capital yesterday in the bloodiest attack in weeks, officials said.
The bomber activated his vest as he sped into the crowd in central Baghdad on busy Palestine Street, an interior ministry official told reporters.
Police academies across Iraq have come under repeated attack as al-Qaeda and other insurgents continue to target security forces around the country.
Fifteen people died and more than 45 were wounded in two blasts at the Baghdad academy on Dec. 1.
It is located in a high security area that includes the interior, oil and irrigation ministries as well as army and national police compounds.
In August, 25 Iraqis, most applicants to the police force, died in a suicide bombing at a recruiting center in Diyala Province, northeast of Baghdad.
Security had been stepped up at the Baghdad academy to try to prevent further attacks.
Palestine Street had been closed to vehicles for security reasons for two years. However one lane was recently reopened with no stopping allowed.
Since late 2007, security has improved dramatically in Iraq and that stability, albeit fragile, is behind US President Barack Obama’s decision to end combat operations in Iraq within 18 months.
The US military said yesterday it would reduce the number of troops in Iraq by around 12,000 in the next six months as part of Obama’s plan to end combat operations in August next year.
“Two brigade combat teams who were scheduled to redeploy in the next six months, along with enabling forces such as logistics, engineers and intelligence, will not be replaced,” the US military said in a statement.
Reducing the number of US combat brigades in Iraq from 14 to 12 would cut the number of US troops — currently around 140,000 — by 12,000, military officials said. A US combat brigade typically has 4,000 to 5,000 soldiers.
Obama plans to pull all combat troops out of Iraq by Aug. 31 next year, leaving 35,000 to 50,000 support and training troops as Washington shifts its military focus to Afghanistan.
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