Car bomb in southern Iraq market kills 12
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 5 March 2009 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Car bomb in southern Iraq market kills 12, 5 March 2009, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/49b68d191a.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
March 05, 2009
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – A car bomb has exploded in a livestock market in Iraq's southern Babil province, killing 12 people and wounding 40, police said.
The blast occurred in a region that has been relatively peaceful for months.
Violence has fallen across Iraq to lows not seen since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, but militants are still capable of carrying out devastating bomb attacks.
It was not immediately clear which militant group was responsible for the blast in Hamza, a mostly Shi'ite Muslim town 130 kilometers south of Baghdad.
Babil Province has a mixed Sunni Arab and Shi'ite population.
The incident seemed to bear the hallmarks of Al-Qaeda, which favors high-profile attacks such as bombing crowded places to maximize civilian casualties.
U.S. troops play a low-key role in southern Iraq after handing over the main responsibility for security to Iraqi forces.
As the United States prepares to withdraw combat troops from Iraq by August 31, 2010, and to leave the country completely by the end of 2011, U.S. and Iraqi forces are racing against the clock to prepare Iraqi military and police to handle all threats.