Day of Death In Baghdad: Female Suicide Bombers Kill 64

UPDATE: There are now reports that al Qaeda utilized two mentally handicapped women for these bombings - either mentally retarded or downs syndrome women. Wouldn't bin Laden be proud. Is there anyone out there now that wants to "negotiate" or retreat?


This is sobering. Two female suicide bombers targeted pet markets in Baghdad today and the toll of both bombings is currently at 64 dead.
This, of course, is horrible news and it represents the single highest daily death count since the Surge, but it also reminds us of one thing. Terrorism will never, EVER go away completely. We have seen the jihadists move down their sliding scale of terror weapons and currently they have sunk to the level of using females as suicide bombers. When the U.S. and Iraqi forces get to the point where they are alert to the females, well...you can imagine what is next on the jihadi scale.
There is no doubt this was al Qaeda in Iraq's work - the style and timing of the twin bombings is their trademark and while al Qaeda has been recruiting female bombers, I have a suspicion that these two may have come from outside of Iraq.
Unfortunately, we will more than likely see this death toll rise.

Here's the full story.

Feb 1, 6:46 AM EST
At Least 64 Dead in Baghdad Market Bombs
By KIM GAMEL Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD (AP) -- Two female suicide bombers blew themselves up Friday in separate attacks on Baghdad pet bazaars, killing at least 64 people and wounding dozens, police said. The attacks were the deadliest in the Iraqi capital since 30,000 more American troops flooded into the center of the country last spring.
In the first attack, a woman detonated explosives hidden under her traditional black Islamic robe at about 10:20 a.m. in the central al-Ghazl market. The weekly bazaar has been bombed several times since the war started but has recently re-emerged as a popular shopping venue as Baghdad security improved and a Friday ban on driving was lifted.
Police said at least 46 people were killed and 82 wounded. Firefighters scooped up debris scattered among pools of blood, clothing and pigeon carcasses.
About 20 minutes later, a second female suicide bomber struck a bird market in a predominantly Shiite area in southeastern Baghdad. That blast killed as many as 18 people and wounded 25, police said.
The attacks shortly before the weekly Islamic call to prayer resounded across the capital were the latest in a series of violent incidents that have been chipping away at Iraqi confidence in the permanence of recent security gains.
Police initially said the bomb was hidden in a box of birds but determined it was a suicide attack after finding the woman's head, an officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information.
At least four other suicide bombings have been staged by women since November, all in the volatile Diyala province northeast of the capital.

Involving women in fighting violates religious taboos in Iraq, but the U.S. military has warned that al-Qaida in Iraq is recruiting women and youths to stage suicide attacks as the insurgents become increasingly desperate to thwart stepped-up security measures.
Women in Iraq often wear a black Islamic robe known as an abaya and it can be easier for them to avoid thorough searches at checkpoints because of Islamic sensitivities about their treatment.