At least 28 people were killed yesterday when two suicide bombers blew themselves up in a crowd of recruits at an Iraqi army base in an area known to be a stronghold of al-Qaeda fighters.
At least 55 people were also wounded in the dual bomb attack at around 8:30am at al-Saad base east of the city of Baqubah in the restive province of Diyala, a security official said.
He said the two bombers, one of whom wore an Iraqi military uniform, detonated their explosives-filled vests at an army recruitment center where young men were signing up.
The attack came ahead of an expected new crackdown against al-Qaeda in a bid to regain control of the volatile region.
The US military gave a lower death toll for the attack, saying 16 Iraqi police recruits were killed and 30 others wounded.
“We were about 30 people standing at the entrance,” Falah Ali Hussein said.
“They had just called our names when suddenly there was a big explosion,” said the 17-year-old from the nearby town of Dalli Abbas, who was wounded in his leg, back and head.
A police officer said the victims were from a first batch of men called from across the province to participate in a military recruitment drive.
“The bombers blew themselves up amid the crowd. One bomber was dressed in Iraqi military uniform, while the other was wearing civilian clothes,” the officer said.
He said the base also housed some US troops, but the US military said it did not suffer any casualties in the attack.
The death toll of 28 was confirmed by a security official in Diyala operation command.
Diyala and its capital Baqubah remain one of the most dangerous areas in Iraq with frequent suicide attacks, including several by female bombers, and car bombs.
“Very soon there will be a big operation by our security forces in Diyala,” interior ministry spokesman Major General Abul Karim Khalaf told reporters on Sunday without giving a specific timeframe. “There will be fighting. It is going to be tough.”
In January, Iraqi and US troops launched “Operation Iron Harvest” in Diyala aimed at running al-Qaeda out of long-held strongholds.
A major success in that operation was regaining control of the “breadbasket” farmlands surrounding the town of Muqdadiyah, where the jihadists had held sway for more than a year.
However al-Qaeda still maintains a grip on other parts of the province despite numerous operations by US and Iraqi forces.
Since 2006 when the sectarian conflict erupted in Iraq, Diyala has witnessed some of the country’s most brutal killings between gangs from the rival communities.
Yesterday’s attack was the third deadliest in less than a month and comes at a time when the US military claims that overall violence in Iraq has fallen to a four-year low.
On June 17 a car bomb killed 51 people and wounded dozens more in a Baghdad market, and 10 days later a suicide bomber killed 25 people in Anbar Province, including three US marines.
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