Car bomb claims 10 lives in Iraq’s Shia south

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - A car bomb exploded at a bus terminal in Iraq's predominantly Shi'ite Muslim south on Sunday, killing at least ten people, police said, as the country's delicate sectarian balance comes under growing strain.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombings, but militants including those linked to al-Qaeda target security forces, civilians and government officials in a bid to destabilize the country and reduce confidence in the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The bomb exploded in the town of Garmat Ali, around 20 km (12 miles) north of the usually stable oil hub of Basra.

"I was thrown back by the explosion. Then I stood up and ran back to help the victims," said bus driver Hameed Salman, his white clothes stained with blood.

"I carried five bodies myself and put them in some civilian cars to take them to the hospital," he added.

Three police sources said nine people had died. The head of the provincial security committee, Ali Ghanim al-Maliki, put the death toll at 10.

Another car bomb went off in a carpark for government offices in the city of Basra itself, wounding two people, police said.

Security experts say al Qaeda-linked militants have been regrouping in the western province of Anbar and crossing into Syria to join rebels battling forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Meanwhile, an al-Qaeda-affiliated group claimed responsibility for an attack on the Justice Ministry in Baghdad last week, in which at least 24 people were killed.

Almost 500 people have been killed in terrorist attacks across Iraq this year.

On Thursday, 21 people were killed in a series of bomb and gun attacks in the capital Baghdad.

/129