53 Killed And 105 Wounded In Iraq Blast By Suicide Bomber
Jacob Cherian - All Headline News Staff Writer Baghdad, Iraq (AHN) - A suicide car bomber set off explosives on Tuesday while workers gathered across the street from a Shia shrine in southern Iraq. The explosion killed, at least, 53 people and wounded another 105. The suicide attacker drove a van to where the Shia laborers met everyday to look for work in Kufa, 160 km south of Baghdad. He then offered the workers jobs, loaded the van with volunteers and blew up the vehicle. The blast took place near Kufa's mosque, said Police Capt. Nalfie Mohammed. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki condemned the attack and vowed to bring justice to those responsible. Kufa is dominated by anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Sadr's movement controls the mosque. It is likely the blast was aimed at playing down Sadr's position in Iraqi sectarian struggle, which has been attributed to Mr. Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia. A top Iraqi official in Baghdad, said that a Jordanian responsible for killing two U.S. soldiers in June was seriously wounded in a struggle with security forces. National Security Adviser Mouwafa al-Rubaie said the Jordanian was Diyar Ismail Mahmoud, or Abu al-Afghani, bud did not say when he died. U.S. authorities said three American soldiers were killed in separate attacks on Monday - two in the Baghdad area and one in Anbar province west of the capital. At least 2,554 U.S, personnel have died sinc |
