Iraq car bombs, shootings kill 25
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Jun 16, 2013, 4:49:08 PM6/16/13
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Iraq car
bombs, shootings kill 25
By Ahmed al-Rubaye
AAP
June 16, 2013 10:49PM
A WAVE of car bombings and shootings, mostly targeting Shi'ites, has killed 25 people as Iraq grapples with a spike in violence and prolonged political deadlock, sparking fears of all-out sectarian war.
In all, at least 10 vehicles rigged with explosives went off in eight cities in Iraq's Shi'ite Muslim-majority south during morning rush hour on Sunday, leaving around 100 people wounded, while the main northern city of Mosul witnessed a deadly shooting.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, but Sunni militant groups linked to al-Qaeda frequently target Shi'ites, whom they regard as apostates.
In Kut, 160km south of Baghdad, a car bomb exploded outside a restaurant, killing seven people and wounding 15.
In nearby Aziziyah another car bomb went off next to a cafe in the main marketplace and near a Shi'ite mosque, killing five people, wounding 10.
"The cafe and the street outside is covered in blood," said Hisham Shadhan, whose father owns the cafe.
Twin blasts in the southern port city of Basra killed five people, including a bomb disposal expert looking to defuse one of the rigged vehicles.
Five others were killed and dozens more wounded in bombings in five other cities.
Early on Sunday, three policemen were shot dead near the main northern city of Mosul, which is primarily Sunni Arab.
The violence was the latest in a spike in attacks nationwide, with last month registering the highest death toll since 2008, sparking fears of a return to the all-out sectarian war that blighted Iraq in 2006 and 2007.
There has been a heightened level of unrest since the beginning of the year, coinciding with rising discontent among the Sunni Arab minority that erupted into protests in late December.
Analysts say a lack of effort by the Shi'ite-led authorities to address the underlying causes of the demonstrations has given militant groups room to manoeuvre to carry out their activities.
Political leaders have pledged to resolve a multitude of longstanding disputes and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has met with his two chief rivals, the Sunni parliament speaker and the Kurdish regional president, in a bid to ease tensions, but no tangible moves have been agreed.
Analysts and diplomats have voiced fears the stalemate could persist through to parliamentary elections next year.
The outgoing UN envoy to Iraq Martin Kobler has warned the violence is "ready to explode".
http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/world/iraq-car-bombs-shootings-kill-25/story-e6frfkui-1226664738670
By Ahmed al-Rubaye
AAP
June 16, 2013 10:49PM
A WAVE of car bombings and shootings, mostly targeting Shi'ites, has killed 25 people as Iraq grapples with a spike in violence and prolonged political deadlock, sparking fears of all-out sectarian war.
In all, at least 10 vehicles rigged with explosives went off in eight cities in Iraq's Shi'ite Muslim-majority south during morning rush hour on Sunday, leaving around 100 people wounded, while the main northern city of Mosul witnessed a deadly shooting.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, but Sunni militant groups linked to al-Qaeda frequently target Shi'ites, whom they regard as apostates.
In Kut, 160km south of Baghdad, a car bomb exploded outside a restaurant, killing seven people and wounding 15.
In nearby Aziziyah another car bomb went off next to a cafe in the main marketplace and near a Shi'ite mosque, killing five people, wounding 10.
"The cafe and the street outside is covered in blood," said Hisham Shadhan, whose father owns the cafe.
Twin blasts in the southern port city of Basra killed five people, including a bomb disposal expert looking to defuse one of the rigged vehicles.
Five others were killed and dozens more wounded in bombings in five other cities.
Early on Sunday, three policemen were shot dead near the main northern city of Mosul, which is primarily Sunni Arab.
The violence was the latest in a spike in attacks nationwide, with last month registering the highest death toll since 2008, sparking fears of a return to the all-out sectarian war that blighted Iraq in 2006 and 2007.
There has been a heightened level of unrest since the beginning of the year, coinciding with rising discontent among the Sunni Arab minority that erupted into protests in late December.
Analysts say a lack of effort by the Shi'ite-led authorities to address the underlying causes of the demonstrations has given militant groups room to manoeuvre to carry out their activities.
Political leaders have pledged to resolve a multitude of longstanding disputes and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has met with his two chief rivals, the Sunni parliament speaker and the Kurdish regional president, in a bid to ease tensions, but no tangible moves have been agreed.
Analysts and diplomats have voiced fears the stalemate could persist through to parliamentary elections next year.
The outgoing UN envoy to Iraq Martin Kobler has warned the violence is "ready to explode".
http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/world/iraq-car-bombs-shootings-kill-25/story-e6frfkui-1226664738670
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