(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - A wave of attacks, most of them car bombs targeting Shi'ite neighbourhoods, rocked Baghdad early on Wednesday, killing at least 24 people in the latest bout of bloodshed to rock Iraq.
The violence, which left 65 others wounded, comes amid a protracted surge in violence just months ahead of general elections that has forced Iraqi officials to appeal for international help in combatting the country’s worst unrest.
At least seven explosions, including six car bombs, hit Shi'ite Muslim neighbourhoods of the Iraqi capital, according to security and medical officials, from about 7:30 am onwards.
They come after similarly coordinated bombings in Baghdad on Sunday evening left 21 dead.
Wednesday’s attacks occurred in areas ranging from the city’s main commercial district of Karrada to the predominantly Shiite neighbourhood of Shaab, as well as Sadriyah, one of Baghdad’s oldest areas.
One car bomb also went off in the Sunni-majority neighbourhood of Adhamiyah in north Baghdad, the officials said.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the violence, but Salafi militants linked to Al-Qaeda’s front group often set off coordinated bombings across Baghdad, typically targeting Shi'ites, whom they regard as apostates.
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The violence, which left 65 others wounded, comes amid a protracted surge in violence just months ahead of general elections that has forced Iraqi officials to appeal for international help in combatting the country’s worst unrest.
At least seven explosions, including six car bombs, hit Shi'ite Muslim neighbourhoods of the Iraqi capital, according to security and medical officials, from about 7:30 am onwards.
They come after similarly coordinated bombings in Baghdad on Sunday evening left 21 dead.
Wednesday’s attacks occurred in areas ranging from the city’s main commercial district of Karrada to the predominantly Shiite neighbourhood of Shaab, as well as Sadriyah, one of Baghdad’s oldest areas.
One car bomb also went off in the Sunni-majority neighbourhood of Adhamiyah in north Baghdad, the officials said.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the violence, but Salafi militants linked to Al-Qaeda’s front group often set off coordinated bombings across Baghdad, typically targeting Shi'ites, whom they regard as apostates.
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