News / Iraq

Bomb blasts leave 9 people dead, 10 wounded near Baghdad

Friday, 06 May 2016 2:02 PM [ Last Update: Friday, 06 May 2016 2:00 PM ]

Iraqis check the damage following a car bomb targeting Shia Muslim pilgrims heading to commemorate the martyrdom anniversary of the seventh Shia Imam Musa ibn Jafar al-Kazim (PBUH) in Baghdad's southern neighborhood of Saidiya on May 2, 2106. (© AFP)

At least nine people have lost their lives and nearly a dozen others sustained injuries when two bomb explosions ripped through residential neighborhoods near the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

Iraqi security and medical officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said eight people were killed and two others injured on Friday when an improvised explosive device went off close to a commercial district in the city of Bismayah, located about 10 kilometers (6.2 mi) southeast of Baghdad, Arabic-language al-Baghdadia satellite television network reported.

Separately, a bomb detonated close to a commercial district in the town of Abu Ghraib, located some 25 kilometers (15 miles) west of the capital, leaving a civilian dead and eight others injured.

On Thursday, five civilians were killed and more than a dozen others sustained injuries when an explosion ripped through a group of mourners at a burial in Haswa region.

“A bomb went off in a graveyard in Haswa as a family were preparing to bury a relative,” Iraq's Interior Ministry spokesman Saad Maan said in a statement.

He added, “The bomb exploded near the grave... and killed five mourners and wounded 14.”

Moreover, a bomb attack struck an outdoor market in the city of Sabaa al-Bour, located approximately 18 miles northwest of Baghdad, leaving one civilian dead and eight others injured.

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq says a total of 741 Iraqis were killed and 1,374 others injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in April.

An Iraqi policeman walks past the wreckage of a car at the site of a car bomb attack that targeted Shia Muslim pilgrims in Baghdad's southeastern commercial neighborhood of Nahrawan, on April 30, 2016. (© AFP)

According to the UN mission, the number of civilian fatalities stood at 410. Violence also claimed the lives of 331 members of the Iraqi security forces. A great portion of the fatalities was recorded in Baghdad, where 232 civilians were killed.

Gruesome violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since Daesh Takfiris launched an offensive in the country in June 2014, and took control of portions of Iraqi territory.

The militants have been committing vicious crimes against all ethnic and religious communities in Iraq, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians and others.

Iraqi army soldiers and fighters from allied Popular Mobilization Units are seeking to win back militant-held regions in joint operations.

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