Scattering of Attacks in Iraq
BAGHDAD — A week after the deadliest day of violence here in more than two years, a scattering of smaller bomb attacks around the country killed at least 12 and wounded more than 50 on Sunday.
Though violence in Iraq has fallen sharply since 2007, many Iraqis fear an escalation before parliamentary elections scheduled for Jan. 16. Since the Oct. 25 attacks that killed 155 and destroyed three government buildings, authorities have arrested dozens of suspects and security officers, and critics have lashed the government for failing to provide security.
Vice President Tariq Al-Hashemi said in a statement Sunday that last week’s attack in Baghdad was preventable, and he blamed “catastrophic gaps and breaches in security forces.”
Sunday’s attacks came as Iraq’s legislators again failed to agree on laws governing the January elections, despite warnings that any delay might prevent the vote from taking place on time. Discussions in parliament Sunday instead focused on other matters.
The bombs Sunday, the first day of the Iraqi work week, killed both police officers and civilians and struck Sunni as well as Shiite areas.
In the deadliest of the attacks, a bomb placed on a parked motorcycle exploded near a police patrol and a crowded kabob restaurant near the southern city of Hilla, killing five people and wounding 37.
“No ambulance came at the beginning — that happens all the time,” said Habeb Alwan, 25, who said he saw the blast. “Police closed the area of the explosion and people started to fight with them because they wanted to get to the scene to check on their relatives.”
Hilla, a predominantly Shiite city about 60 miles south of Baghdad, was the site of a 2005 suicide bomb that killed at least 114 people, until then the deadliest single attack since the 2003 invasion.
Elsewhere, a magnetic bomb attached to a minibus filled with 21 passengers exploded near a checkpoint in the Karbala province, southwest of Baghdad, killing three people and wounding 12 others. Karbala, home of one of the most sacred Shiite mosques, had been relatively peaceful until a spate of attacks in the past few months.
Near Ramadi, the southwest point of Iraq’s Sunni Triangle, a car bomb and a suicide bomber wearing a belt laden with explosives killed two police officers and wounded five people. Ramadi, once one of the most dangerous cities in Iraq, has for two years been a model for progress in Iraq since tribal leaders and United States counterinsurgency forces defeated an Al-Qaeda cell. But recent attacks there have led to concern that Al-Qaeda and other insurgent forces may be regaining strength.
Sheik ali Al-Hatem, a leader of the Sunni Awakening, the group credited with bringing down violence, blamed the “deteriorating of the security situation” on the police and provincial council, saying, “There are no police here — they are just a name with no actions.”
Since September, at least eight attacks on police officers and other officials have killed more than 70 and wounded dozens more in Anbar Province, which includes Ramadi.
Also on Sunday, an improvised explosive device in Mosul province killed two Iraqi soldiers and injured a third, and four police officers were killed in two shootings there.
In October, 453 Iraqi civilians and security personnel were killed, up from a low of 379 in September but considerably below a high of 677 in April, according to the Ministry of Information. The statistics do not count deaths in the northern Kurdish region. In June, United States troops withdrew from cities and towns, handing security responsibilities to Iraqi forces.
Reporting was contributed by employees of The New York Times in Babil, Karbala and Mosul.
BAGHDAD — A week after the deadliest day of violence here in more than two years, a scattering of smaller bomb attacks around the country killed at least 12 and wounded more than 50 on Sunday.
Though violence in Iraq has fallen sharply since 2007, many Iraqis fear an escalation before parliamentary elections scheduled for Jan. 16. Since the Oct. 25 attacks that killed 155 and destroyed three government buildings, authorities have arrested dozens of suspects and security officers, and critics have lashed the government for failing to provide security.
Vice President Tariq Al-Hashemi said in a statement Sunday that last week’s attack in Baghdad was preventable, and he blamed “catastrophic gaps and breaches in security forces.”
Sunday’s attacks came as Iraq’s legislators again failed to agree on laws governing the January elections, despite warnings that any delay might prevent the vote from taking place on time. Discussions in parliament Sunday instead focused on other matters.
The bombs Sunday, the first day of the Iraqi work week, killed both police officers and civilians and struck Sunni as well as Shiite areas.
In the deadliest of the attacks, a bomb placed on a parked motorcycle exploded near a police patrol and a crowded kabob restaurant near the southern city of Hilla, killing five people and wounding 37.
“No ambulance came at the beginning — that happens all the time,” said Habeb Alwan, 25, who said he saw the blast. “Police closed the area of the explosion and people started to fight with them because they wanted to get to the scene to check on their relatives.”
Hilla, a predominantly Shiite city about 60 miles south of Baghdad, was the site of a 2005 suicide bomb that killed at least 114 people, until then the deadliest single attack since the 2003 invasion.
Elsewhere, a magnetic bomb attached to a minibus filled with 21 passengers exploded near a checkpoint in the Karbala province, southwest of Baghdad, killing three people and wounding 12 others. Karbala, home of one of the most sacred Shiite mosques, had been relatively peaceful until a spate of attacks in the past few months.
Near Ramadi, the southwest point of Iraq’s Sunni Triangle, a car bomb and a suicide bomber wearing a belt laden with explosives killed two police officers and wounded five people. Ramadi, once one of the most dangerous cities in Iraq, has for two years been a model for progress in Iraq since tribal leaders and United States counterinsurgency forces defeated an Al-Qaeda cell. But recent attacks there have led to concern that Al-Qaeda and other insurgent forces may be regaining strength.
Sheik ali Al-Hatem, a leader of the Sunni Awakening, the group credited with bringing down violence, blamed the “deteriorating of the security situation” on the police and provincial council, saying, “There are no police here — they are just a name with no actions.”
Since September, at least eight attacks on police officers and other officials have killed more than 70 and wounded dozens more in Anbar Province, which includes Ramadi.
Also on Sunday, an improvised explosive device in Mosul province killed two Iraqi soldiers and injured a third, and four police officers were killed in two shootings there.
In October, 453 Iraqi civilians and security personnel were killed, up from a low of 379 in September but considerably below a high of 677 in April, according to the Ministry of Information. The statistics do not count deaths in the northern Kurdish region. In June, United States troops withdrew from cities and towns, handing security responsibilities to Iraqi forces.
Reporting was contributed by employees of The New York Times in Babil, Karbala and Mosul.
Source: New York Times
