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Iraq
Iraq bombers target embassies, killing at least 41
2010-04-05
Baghdad - At least 41 people were killed and 237 wounded Sunday in three suicide car bombings targeting the Iranian and German embassies and the Egyptian Consulate in a span of 30 minutes.

The attacks, which Iraqi government officials blamed on the Sunni Arab extremist group Al Qaeda in Iraq, came two days after unknown gunmen in uniforms massacred 25 people in a Sunni district south of Baghdad.

The bloodshed raises fears that the security situation could unravel before Iraq's next government is formed, as armed groups and political parties look to exploit the uncertain period after last month's national elections. The conditions are reminiscent of early 2006 when Al Qaeda in Iraq took advantage of the transition between elected governments to blow up a major Shiite Muslim shrine and ignite a civil war between the country's Shiite majority and its Sunni minority, which dominated the government of President Saddam Hussein before he was toppled in the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

It also came as American forces prepare to draw down to 50,000 noncombat troops by the end of August and are less able to curb tensions between the sides because of their diminishing numbers.

Many of those killed Sunday were motorists and pedestrians near the consular buildings in the capital's central governmental hub and an embassy row in west Baghdad. No diplomats were reported wounded or killed.

None of the compounds were breached, but the force of the blast by the Egyptian Consulate tore down a wall. The deadliest attack was at the Iranian Embassy in central Baghdad, surrounded by key government institutions, where 23 were killed. Eighteen died in the twin bombings at the German and Egyptian missions, located about five minutes apart on Emirat Street in Baghdad's Mansour district.

The road opposite the Iranian Embassy, a stately sand-colored building, was strewn with half a dozen burned vehicles, like a child's messy train set. Caved-in jeeps and sedans, smeared with blood and tiny bits of flesh, were parked by concrete barriers, still plastered with faded posters of politicians from provincial elections a year ago, when Iraq's mood was more optimistic. The packed district, located next to the fortified Green Zone, has been hit by suicide bombers at least four times since August.

The attack on the consulate left three Egyptian officials lightly wounded. An Iraqi policeman charged with security for the embassies of Germany, Syria, Morocco and Tunisia on Emirat Street was killed, along with two other police officers, according to Foreign Ministry officials. At the German Embassy, a guard was killed, and three doctors at a clinic nearby were wounded.
Posted by:Steve White

#1  And the Left criticized America for making its embassy in Iraq too much of a "fortress"...
Posted by: American Delight   2010-04-05 07:00  

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