Baghdad car bombs cause carnage

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FE Team | Published: December 09, 2009 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

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A series of car bombings have killed at least 118 people and wounded 197 in the centre of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
The first blast targeted a police patrol in the Dora district of the city. Four others occurred near official buildings within minutes.
Iraqi national security adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie blamed al-Qaeda militants for the attacks.
He told the BBC their aim was to destabilise the country ahead of general elections due in Febuary.
"Al-Qaeda has been active in Baghdad recently," Mr Rubaie said.
"The aim is to show the government is unable to protect civilian and its own people and also to deter people from going to ballot boxes."
The explosions on Tuesday shook houses across the capital.
Official buildings located near the blasts include the interior ministry, the social affairs ministry, a university and the institute of fine arts.
There were civilian and security force personnel casualties, officials said.
Survivor Ahmed Jabbar, emerging from a damaged ministry building, told AP news agency: "What crime have we committed? Children and women were buried under debris."
Iraqi government figures have shown that violence generally has fallen over the past 18 months.
In October, however, co-ordinated bombs attacks killed at least 155 people and wounded hundreds in Baghdad.
Correspondents say that despite occasional massive bombings, insurgents stage frequent smaller-scale attacks against targets such as marketplaces, mosques or schools.
At least eight people - mostly children - died in a school bombing in Baghdad on Monday.
AP adds: The interior ministry official said some of those killed by the suicide attacker in Dora were students at a nearby technical college. The remaining three victims were policemen working at the checkpoint.
Violence across Iraq dropped dramatically last month, with the fewest deaths in attacks since the US-led invasion of 2003. Official figures showed a total of 122 people were killed in November.
However the Baghdad government and the US military have warned of a rise in attacks in the run up to the election, which is expected to take place in February.
The threat of political violence linked to the poll is a major concern after bloody attacks in Baghdad in August and October that killed more than 250 people.
The attacks, including truck bombings outside the finance, foreign and justice ministries, punctured confidence in the Iraqi security forces.