Two suicide bombers strapped with explosives blew themselves up in the middle of a protest by former policemen south of Baghdad yesterday, killing at least 29 and injuring 128 others in one of the deadliest attacks in a month of escalating violence.
The blasts in the mostly Shiite town of Hilla and the brief detention of a Sunni Arab political leader by US forces in Baghdad put fresh strain on ties between Iraq's Muslim sects. Al-Qaeda's network in Iraq claimed responsibility for the bombings in separate statements posted on the Internet.
Police said the bombers mingled with former police commandos who were demonstrating outside a government office because their unit had been disbanded.
PHOTO: AFP
The first bomber detonated his explosives in the middle of the crowd. As survivors scattered, the other bomber ran with them and blew himself up nearby.
"You just can't count the dead because the bodies were torn apart," said one Iraqi man surveying the scene. "May God punish those who did this."
Body parts lay in pools of blood on the street beside discarded sandals and shoes. Workers carried shredded bodies on stretchers and sheets and loaded them onto the back of pick-up trucks.
Insurgents have stepped up suicide attacks and ambushes over the past month, killing more than 700 Iraqis since a new Shiite-led Cabinet was announced on April 28.
Seventy US troops have been killed this month, making it the deadliest month for the US military since January when insurgents tried to derail the Jan. 30 elections.
The escalating violence in Iraq has worsened sectarian tensions. Political leaders have called for calm, telling Iraqis not to allow insurgents to push the country towards civil war.
There are also fears of ethnic tensions between Kurds and Arabs. In Kirkuk, a Kurdish general was shot dead overnight Sunday, the latest official to be assassinated in the Arab-Kurd city. The militant group Army of Ansar al-Sunna claimed responsibility.
Washington has been encouraging the Shiite and Kurdish blocs that emerged strongest from the January polls to involve more Sunni Arabs in the drafting of a permanent constitution, the next step on Iraq's path to democracy.
Sunni Arabs dominated Iraq during Saddam's rule but won only 17 seats in Iraq's 275-member parliament because many Sunni groups boycotted the elections and violence in Sunni Arab areas meant turnout there was extremely low.
The government, trying to defuse sectarian tension and undermine an insurgency dominated by Sunni Arab fighters, gave several Cabinet posts to Sunnis and says it is examining ways to give them a greater role in drafting the constitution.
But in a move that inflamed Sunni Arab anger, US troops arrested Mohsen Abdul-Hamid, the leader of an influential Sunni party, yesterday, the party said. He was later released.
"This morning coalition forces detained and interviewed Mohsen Abdul-Hamid. Following the interview it was determined that he was detained by mistake and should be released," a statement issued by the US military said.
Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, a Shiite, has ordered an investigation into Abdul-Hamid's detention, his spokesman said.
"We believe there are parties that are benefiting from such raids on prominent Sunni leaders who have been supporting the political process and democracy in Iraq," the spokesman said. "This is the fourth time that a Sunni leader has been arrested."
The Iraqi Islamic Party withdrew from the January elections, saying violence in Sunni areas meant the polls would not be fair. But it has signalled it is ready to take a greater part in Iraqi politics and the writing of a constitution.
"The US administration claims it is interested in drawing Sunnis into the political process but it seems that their way of doing so is by raids, arrests and violating human rights," the party said in a statement.
Meanwhile, in western Anbar province, US troops raided two towns on the Euphrates river and killed several foreign fighters, the US military said.
MONEY GRAB: People were rushing to collect bills scattered on the ground after the plane transporting money crashed, which an official said hindered rescue efforts A cargo plane carrying money on Friday crashed near Bolivia’s capital, damaging about a dozen vehicles on highway, scattering bills on the ground and leaving at least 15 people dead and others injured, an official said. Bolivian Minister of Defense Marcelo Salinas said the Hercules C-130 plane was transporting newly printed Bolivian currency when it “landed and veered off the runway” at an airport in El Alto, a city adjacent to La Paz, before ending up in a nearby field. Firefighters managed to put out the flames that engulfed the aircraft. Fire chief Pavel Tovar said at least 15 people died, but
LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER: By showing Ju-ae’s ability to handle a weapon, the photos ‘suggest she is indeed receiving training as a successor,’ an academic said North Korea on Saturday released a rare image of leader Kim Jong-un’s teenage daughter firing a rifle at a shooting range, adding to speculation that she is being groomed as his successor. Kim’s daughter, Ju-ae, has long been seen as the next in line to rule the secretive, nuclear-armed state, and took part in a string of recent high-profile outings, including last week’s military parade marking the closing stages of North Korea’s key party congress. Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released a photo of Ju-ae shooting a rifle at an outdoor shooting range, peering through a rifle scope
India and Canada yesterday reached a string of agreements, including on critical mineral cooperation and a “landmark” uranium supply deal for nuclear power, the countries’ leaders said in New Delhi. The pacts, which also covered technology and promoting the use of renewable energy, were announced after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney hailed a fresh start in the relationship between their nations. “Our ties have seen a new energy, mutual trust and positivity,” Modi said. Carney’s visit is a key step forward in ties that effectively collapsed in 2023 after Ottawa accused New Delhi
Gaza is rapidly running out of its limited fuel supply and stocks of food staples might become tight, officials said, after Israel blocked the entry of fuel and goods into the war-shattered territory, citing fighting with Iran. The Israeli military closed all Gaza border crossings on Saturday after announcing airstrikes on Iran carried out jointly with the US. Israeli authorities late on Monday night said that they would reopen the Kerem Shalom crossing from Israel to Gaza yesterday, for “gradual entry of humanitarian aid” into the strip, without saying how much. Israeli authorities previously said the crossings could not be operated safely during
RSS