Wave of Bombings Hit Iraq's Capital
BAGHDAD --A wave bombings hit the Iraqi capital on Sunday, killing nearly two dozen people in a spate of violence that rocked nearly every corner of Baghdad and renewed questions about whether the country's security forces can repel future internal threats.
In a 90-minute period shortly after sunrise, at least seven explosions ripped through the city, a succession of blasts that unnerved Iraq and U.S. officials who had been heralding the overall decline in violence here in recent months.
With the 46,000 U.S. troops still in Iraq preparing to withdraw by the end of the year, the sheer number of attacks Sunday raised further concerns about what awaits Baghdad..
Gen. Jeffrey S. Buchanan, spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq, said the violence "serves as a solemn reminder that there remains a determined and dangerous enemy."
Neither Buchanan or Iraqi security officials would speculate who may have been behind Sunday's attacks. But several Baghdad officials said they fear the city is dual threats in the months leading up the scheduled Dec. 31 withdrawal of U.S. forces.
"It's kind of a two shot situation," said Mohammeed Alrubaye, a member of the Baghdad Provincial Council, who heads up the Strategic Planning Committee. "From one of the sides, they are saying, 'We want the American troops to stay' and other side is saying, if they stay, 'we are going to be here to exist as an ..Army."
No U.S. troops, who currently serve in non-combat roles in Iraq, were killed or wounded in any of the incidents. Instead most of the explosions were directed Iraqi police officers and government officials, both of whom have become favored targets of terrorism and insurgency groups in recent months.
Security officials estimate there were at least 21 deaths and more than 80 injuries during the attacks, which came from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
The most serious incident occurred in Baghdad's Taji District in the northern part of the city after a booby-trapped car exploded near a convoy. After Iraqi police rushed to the scene, a man wearing a suicide blast blew himself up, killing at least 12 and injuring dozens, according to security sources.
Near simultaneous explosions were also reported in Baghdad's Ala'amil district in the southern part of the city, near federal police headquarters, and on Palestine Street in eastern Baghdad, where an explosive charge went off near a group of police officers, killing one and injuring five civilians, officials said.
In Sadr City in eastern Baghdad, another bomb detonated near the area's main hospital, killing at least two people and injuring five others, according to a Department of Interior spokesman. A separate explosion nearby wounded five others, according to government officials.
Then, in Talibia in northern Baghdad, a car bomb exploded near a convoy carrying Adil Muhammad, described as the head of internal affairs for the Ministry of Interior. Muhammad survived, but one person was killed and five others were injured, including two bodyguards.
And in Baghdad's central business district, one person was killed and a dozen police officers were wounded in an apparent bombing, official said.
Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki did not directly address the violence Sunday, but the attacks will likely increase the pressure on the government to prove it can control the recent uptick in bloodshed.
Tariq al Hashimi, Iraq's vice-president, said the government needs to take "immediate and fast" steps to beef up security in the capital, including the appointment national security ministers.
Although Iraq's coalition government was formed last year, the country is still operating without ministers of defense and interior, and a director of intelligence. Maliki has been saying for weeks the appointments are forthcoming, but his nominations have been caught up in infighting among different political blocs in Parliament.
On Thursday, a bomb ripped through a garage at police headquarters in Kirkuk, killing at least 27 police officers, firefighters and security personnel and injuring 86 others in what Iraqi media described as the deadliest incident inside the country in more than two months.
Some Iraqi government officials have blamed Al Qaeda for the Kirkuk attack, noting it came one day after they arrested several men in the area suspected of having ties to the organization.