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Mortar shells hit Baghdad prison killing seven inmates
Mortar shells slammed into an Interior Ministry prison on Monday, killing at least seven inmates and wounding 23, police and a hospital official said. A major oil refinery came under fire in a separate attack elsewhere in the capital, officials said, sending up billowing black smoke.The mortar rounds hit a prison made up of several cell blocks, each containing prisoners accused of terrorism-related crimes or civil offenses, police said. Police said American troops sealed off the area and were investigating the bombardment, which took place about 6:30 a.m. The U.S. military said it had no immediate information, and Iraqi Interior Ministry officials could not be reached for comment. A hospital official said the inmates were still asleep when the mortars hit, one landing directly on a cell and two others nearby. Casualties were sent to a hospital inside the Interior Ministry compound for treatment, the official said. Elsewhere in Baghdad, a rocket or a mortar shell hit an oil refinery on Monday, police and an Oil Ministry spokesman said. The U.S. military confirmed an attack in the area. Assim Jihad, a spokesman for Iraq's Oil Ministry, said a rocket or mortar shell landed on a storage tank around 6 a.m. He said no casualties were reported and the plant was still operating. "The fire is under control and within a few hours it will be extinguished. This will not affect production," Assim told The Associated Press. A police official said the fire was caused by a 120 mm mortar round. The police and hospital officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release details of the attacks. Posted by: ryuge 2007-12-10 |
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