Mosque attacks kills 13
2005-02-11 21:57
Balad Ruz, Iraq - Thirteen people were killed and 23 wounded on Friday when a car bomb exploded in front a Shiite mosque in the town of Balad Ruz, northeast of Baghdad, security sources said.
Officer Maher Salah explained that the local security services had received information a car bombing was being planned.
"Security was deployed around the mosque to search for the car but, when they found it, another one went off," he said.
The blast killed nine civilians and three policemen while another body could not immediately be identified.
Maher Salah added that at least 23 people were wounded in the explosion in Balad Ruz, 65km from the capital.
The bombing was the latest in a string of apparently sectarian attacks blamed on Sunni Arab insurgents angry at the expected empowerment of the long oppressed Shiite majority through historic elections last month.
On January 21, 15 people were killed in a suicide car bomb attack against a Shiite mosque in Baghdad which was claimed by the network of Al-Qaeda frontman in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
On February 4, another Shiite mosque in Baghdad was destroyed by insurgents.
- AFP