Double Bomb Attack By Al Qaeda In Iraq Kills 27 At Iraqi Government Center

Fifty people were also wounded in the explosions that targeted a municipal government building in the Iraqi town of Taji. — Photo by AP


A classic al Qaeda in Iraq attack today combined a suicide car bombing along with another suicide bomber or IED charge at a government municipal building parking lot has killed 27 people and left at least 50 injured.

From the report at DAWN:

Two explosions at a municipal government building in the Iraqi town of Taji on Tuesday killed at least 27 people and wounded 50 others, officials said.

A car bomb and another explosive detonated in a crowded parking lot of the government building in Taji, about 20 kilometres north of Baghdad, security sources told Reuters.

“It was a double explosion. The first was caused by a car bomb. We have no idea what the second was, whether a suicide bomber or a roadside bomb,” said Raad al-Tamimi, the head of the Taji municipality.

“The place was crowded with people who were going to process official papers and with police and employees,” he said.

What this attack underlines is the continued patience by al Qaeda in Iraq - if you notice, these attacks over the past six months or so have been extremely effective showing a good deal of planning and patience by the terrorists. And as is almost always the case, al Qaeda's target has something to do with the government - whether it is a police station or a municipal building like this one.

Also, one of the disturbing things is that these attacks are spread out over much of Iraq - it's not like there are one or two cells left of al Qaeda in Iraq operating - we have seen these bombings in Baghdad but also north of the city, south of the city and in the north and west provinces.

Two explosions kill at least 27 in Iraq


BAGHDAD: Two explosions at a municipal government building in the Iraqi town of Taji on Tuesday killed at least 27 people and wounded 50 others, officials said.

A car bomb and another explosive detonated in a crowded parking lot of the government building in Taji, about 20 kilometres north of Baghdad, security sources told Reuters.

“It was a double explosion. The first was caused by a car bomb. We have no idea what the second was, whether a suicide bomber or a roadside bomb,” said Raad al-Tamimi, the head of the Taji municipality.

“The place was crowded with people who were going to process official papers and with police and employees,” he said.

Deputy Health Minister Khamis al-Saad said the blasts killed 27 people and wounded 50. An interior ministry source put the initial toll at 35 dead and 28 wounded.

The bombings followed a series of attacks that targeted Iraqi security forces over the last two days, killing at least ten police and soldiers and wounding 22 others.