|
Bombers hit Iraq pet market
23/11/2007 16:40 - (SA)
Baghdad - Two bombs hidden in a carton exploded simultaneously in Baghdad's popular al-Ghazl pet market on Friday, killing at least 13 people and wounding 58, Iraqi officials said.
The market, which only opens on Fridays, was crowded with people at the time of the mid-morning blast, the second major bombing to rock Baghdad this week.
"Two IEDs (improvised explosive devices) were hidden in a carton and left in the crowded centre of the market," an interior ministry official said. "They exploded simultaneously."
Vendors use cardboard cartons to transport birds to the market, which with its vast array of birds, ranging from rare species smuggled in from Brazil and Africa to noisy parrots, is a huge attraction for Baghdadis on the Muslim weekly holy day.
Vendors at the market arrive each Friday with their birds and other pets such as rabbits and Siamese cats imported from Iran and set up roadside stalls.
Many animals killed
Emergency workers were seen scraping human flesh from the walls of nearby buildings.
Witnesses said many animals had been killed and that rare tropical fish were left flapping in the street after the blast shattered their glass tanks.
A medic at al-Kindi hospital said at least 45 injured people were brought to the facility, among them four policemen.
An interior ministry official put the overall toll at 13 killed and 58 wounded. Others casualties were transferred to Medical City and Ibn-Nafis, two other major hospitals in Baghdad.
The market in the central neighbourhood of al-Jhumuri had been barely operating after being bombed in the past, although in recent months due to the drop in levels of violence, people had returned in numbers.
Al-Ghazl, a textile and garment market until the 1960s, turned into an animal market as new traders moved in and quickly became popular with Iraqis, traditionally known as bird-lovers.
On Sunday, nine people were killed and 20 injured when a car bomb exploded in Baghdad's Karrada neighbourhood as the Finance Ministry official's convoy passed by.
Police targeted
Iraq's northern city of Mosul also was hit by a suicide bombing on Friday.
A suicide bomber slammed his explosives-laden car against a police patrol in the southern neighbourhood of al-Mithaq, killing five people, police Brigadier General Abdul Karim al-Juburi said.
"The bomber targeted the police patrol. Five people, including two policemen, have died in the attack," Juburi said, adding seven others were wounded.
|
News
