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IRAQ WARS
Anti-Shiite bomb attack in Baghdad kills 25
by Staff Writers
Baghdad (AFP) June 4, 2012


Deadliest Iraq attacks since US pullout
Baghdad (AFP) June 4, 2012 - A suicide car bombing at the headquarters of Iraq's Shiite Muslim religious endowment in Baghdad killed at least 22 people on Monday, medical officials said.

Here is a timeline of the deadliest attacks since US forces completed their withdrawal from Iraq on December 18, 2011, after nine years in the country:

2011

DECEMBER

- 22: Coordinated rush hour attacks in Baghdad kill at least 60 people and wound 183, as violence elsewhere in Iraq claims another seven lives.

2012

JANUARY

- 5: Attacks against Shiite Muslims in Baghdad and the south kill 68 people and wound more than 100.

- 14: A suicide bomber targeting Shiite pilgrims on the outskirts of the southern port city of Basra kills 53 people and wounds more than 130.

- 27: A suicide bomber detonates an explosives-packed car at a funeral outside a Baghdad hospital, killing 31 people and wounding 60.

FEBRUARY

- 19: A suicide car bombing outside a Baghdad police academy kills 15 people and wounds 21.

- 23: A wave of attacks nationwide, blamed on Al-Qaeda, kills 42 people and wounds more than 250.

MARCH

- 5: Suspected Al-Qaeda gunmen, some wearing police uniforms, rampage through the western city of Haditha in a pre-dawn shooting spree that leaves 27 policemen dead.

- 20: A wave of attacks in more than a dozen cities kills 50 people and wounds 255.

APRIL

- 19: At least 38 killed and more than 170 wounded in a wave of attacks nationwide.

MAY

- 31: Seventeen people killed and at least 57 wounded in a spate of bombings across Baghdad, while three others are shot dead in north Iraq.

JUNE

- 4: At least 22 people are killed and 65 wounded in a suicide car bombing against the headquarters of the Shiite Muslim religious endowment in Baghdad.

A suicide attacker blew up a bomb-packed car at a Shiite foundation's headquarters in Baghdad on Monday, killing at least 25 people and sparking fears of sectarian strife at a time of political crisis.

Shortly after what was Baghdad's deadliest blast in over four months, an explosion struck near a Sunni religious foundation's headquarters in the capital, causing no casualties.

The attacks came amid a dispute between the two Muslim endowments which manage Iraq's religious landmarks over a shrine north of Baghdad.

The violence also comes during a protracted political standoff that has raised sectarian tensions in a country racked by brutal communal bloodshed from 2006 to 2008.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi both issued condemnations of the violence and appealed for calm, as did United Nations envoy Martin Kobler.

Monday's first attack struck at 11:00 am (0800 GMT) outside the Shiite endowment in Baab al-Muadham, in central Baghdad, and left at least 25 people dead and more than 65 wounded, medical officials said.

The bombing completely destroyed the endowment headquarters, its deputy chief, Sami al-Massudi, told AFP.

"We do not accuse anyone, but we call on the Iraqi people and especially on the sons of our religion to bury the strife because there is a plan to launch a civil war between the people, and between the Iraqi sects," Massudi said.

He said the Shiite endowment had received threats in recent days because of a dispute over the Al-Askari shrine, a Shiite mausoleum in the mostly Sunni city of Samarra.

The iconic gold-domed shrine was hit by a brutal Al-Qaeda suicide attack in February 2006 that ignited Iraq's bloody confessional violence.

Massudi and his aides had produced documents that attributed the management of the shrine to the Shiite religious endowment, sparking tensions with its Sunni counterpart.

"The issue of the Al-Askari shrine is a legal and constitutional issue, and it is our right, because it is a Shiite shrine," Massudi said.

The attack also fell on a significant day for Shiite Muslims -- the birthday of Imam Ali, a cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed, who is a revered figure in Shiite Islam.

AFP journalists near the site of the attack said security forces cordoned off the area and barred anyone from approaching, while emergency workers searched for survivors in the remains of the endowment headquarters.

Several cars and nearby buildings were badly damaged by the explosion, and helicopters hovered overhead.

One man threw his spectacles to the ground and yelled: "They are all dead! They are all dead!"

Later on Monday, a statement on the Sunni endowment's website said that a mortar round struck near its headquarters in Adhamiyah, in north Baghdad. An interior ministry official said it was a roadside bomb that exploded near the building.

The attack did not cause any casualties, both said.

"We reject and condemn this criminal, cowardly, fanatical attack," Sunni endowment spokesman Faris al-Mehdawi said, referring to the attack against the Shiite endowment.

"These attacks aim to create divisions between the Iraqi people," he said. "There are dirty hands that are playing on sectarianism, and trying to bring the country back to the years of violence."

The latest bloodshed comes less than a week after a spate of bombings in Baghdad left 17 people dead on May 31, shattering a relative calm in the city.

The spike in attacks coincides with a ratcheting up of months-long tensions in which several political parties have called for the prime minister to be unseated.

"Maliki and Allawi are fighting over the government, and we are the victims," said Mohammed, who owns a restaurant opposite the Shiite foundation headquarters, referring to Iyad Allawi, a rival of the prime minister.

"Come and see the houses that were destroyed on the heads of children," he said, shirtless and covered in blood. "In my two hands, I carried children from under the rubble."

Monday's death toll was the highest from a single attack in Baghdad since a suicide bomber blew up a car outside a hospital on January 27 killing 31 people.

Violence in Iraq has declined dramatically since its peak in 2006-2007, but attacks remain common, especially in Baghdad. A total of 132 Iraqis were killed in violence in May, according to official figures.

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Iraq: The first technology war of the 21st century






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IRAQ WARS
Suicide car bomb at Iraq Shiite endowment kills 8
Baghdad (AFP) June 4, 2012
A suicide attacker detonated an explosives-packed car at the headquarters of Iraq's Shiite religious endowment in central Baghdad on Monday, killing at least eight people, medics said. The 11:00 am (0800 GMT) attack also left more than 35 people wounded, two medical officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Among the dead were two policemen. Monday's attack at the Shiite endowm ... read more


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