The latest in Baghdad

Baghdad blasts target Shi'ites, kill 63

2011-12-22T08:00:09Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A wave of bombings killed at least 63 people in Baghdad on Thursday, the first attacks since Iraq's Shi'ite-led government was engulfed in a crisis that risks fracturing the country along sectarian and ethnic faultlines.

The bombings, just days after the last U.S. troops lef...

Baghdad blasts kill 63 as Iraq tensions rise

2011-12-22T05:30:15Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A series of bombings hit Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 63 people in the first big assault attack on Iraq's capital since a sectarian crisis erupted within its government just days after the U.S. troop withdrawal.

The apparently coordinated bombings were the first sign of a violen...

Baghdad blasts kill 57 as Iraq tensions rise

2011-12-22T01:00:27Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A rash of bombings hit Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 57 people in the first big attack on Iraq's capital since a crisis between its Shi'ite Muslim-led government and Sunni rivals erupted days after the U.S. troop withdrawal.

The apparently coordinated bombings were the first sign...

Baghdad blasts kill 40 as tensions rise

2011-12-22T01:00:15Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A series of blasts and a suicide bomber hit mainly Shi'ite areas in Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 40 people in the first major attack on Iraq's capital since a crisis erupted between its Shi'ite-led government and Sunni rivals just days after the U.S. troop withdrawal.

...

Baghdad blasts kill 17 as tensions rise

2011-12-21T23:30:12Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A series of blasts hit mainly Shi'ite areas in Baghdad Thursday, killing at least 17 people in the first wave of attacks on Iraq's capital since a crisis erupted between its Shi'ite-led government and Sunni rivals after the U.S. troop withdrawal.

The apparently coordinated a...

Iraq says PM possible target in Green Zone bomb

2011-12-02T15:00:21Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi authorities said on Friday a rare attack inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone this week was carried out by a suicide bomber in a car and may have targeted the country's prime minister.

Reports a suicide bomber was able to penetrate the Green Zone, which houses the U.S. and other embassies as well as...

18 dead in attacks in Iraq's Diyala

2011-12-01T09:30:38Z

Attacks in Iraq's confessionally mixed Diyala province, north of Baghdad, killed 18 people on Thursday, 10 of them in a market bombing in the town of Khalis, medical and security officials said.

The bloodshed came as US Vice President Joe Biden was in Iraq to usher in a new ...

17 killed, MP wounded in Iraq attacks

2011-11-28T16:30:19Z

At least 17 people were killed and more than 50 wounded, among them an Iraqi member of parliament, on Monday in a wave of bloody attacks mainly in and around Baghdad, security officials and an MP said.

In the deadliest attack, a suicide car bomber detonated an explosives-packed vehicle near the main entrance of Hout prison in Taji north of Baghdad at about 8:00 am (0500 GMT), as famil...

Suicide bomber hits Iraq military base, 19 dead

2011-11-28T09:00:16Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber attacked a military base in the Iraqi town of Taji on Monday, killing at least 19 people, in the latest assault by insurgents trying to undermine the government.

In central Baghdad an explosion in a car park at Iraq's ...

11 killed in Iraq suicide bombing outside jail

2011-11-28T04:30:40Z

A suicide car bomber detonated an explosives-packed vehicle at a prison north of Baghdad on Monday, killing 11 people and wounding at least 15, security officials said.

The attack, which left policemen and prison guards and employees among the dead, is the latest in a series of bloody assaults across the country in the past week, which have killed at least 55 people.

The bomber blew up the car at about 8:00 am (0500 GMT) on Monday...

Bomber hits Iraq military base, 11 dead: officials

2011-11-28T00:30:17Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber struck a military base in the Iraqi town of Taji Monday, killing at least 11 people in the latest attack by insurgents attempting to undermine the government.

It was the third major attack in the last five days and underscored the fragile state of Iraqi secu...

Bomber hits Iraq military base, 11 dead: sources

2011-11-27T23:00:15Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber struck a military base in the Iraqi town of Taji Monday, killing at least 11 people and wounding 19 others, police and hospital sources said.

The explosion took place at the entrance to the base, which houses a jail, the sources said. Taji is 20 km (12 miles...

11 killed in attacks on Iraq security forces

2011-11-07T10:30:26Z

Bomb and gun attacks against police and anti-Qaeda militiamen killed 11 people and wounded 38 across Iraq on Thursday, security officials said.

The attacks come amid fears that security may worsen after the departure of US forces from Iraq. The roughly 34,000 American soldiers still in the country are to leave by year's end.

Two roadside bombs exploded near a police special forces checkpoint in the

Four killed after bombs target Iraq Sunni militia

2011-11-05T16:00:18Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Four bombs exploded near the home of a local leader of a government-supported Sunni militia north of Iraq's capital on Saturday, killing four people and wounding eight others, police and health sources said.

The attack follows a major assault on Thursday on the Sahwa militia, which helpe...

Iraq attacks kill at least six

2011-10-24T15:30:35Z

Attacks in Baghdad mainly targeting Iraqi traffic police killed at least four people on Monday and two others were shot dead in northern Iraq, security and medical officials said.

In the deadliest violence, gunmen opened fire on a traffic police patrol near Al-Sarafiyah bridge in the Baghdad, including two suicide car bombs minutes apart against police stations, killed 23 people on Wednesday, the Iraqi capital's deadliest day in more than a month.

The violence, in which more than 70 people were wounded, showed insurgents' ability to plan and carry out coordinated attacks on well-secured targets, as Iraq weighs its options over ...

Suicide bombers kill 11 at Baghdad police stations

2011-10-12T04:30:14Z

Two suicide attackers detonated their explosives-packed vehicles just minutes apart at police stations in Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 11 people, security officials said.

At least 42 others were wounded in the twin blasts at around 8:30 am (0530 GMT) in Hurriyah, north Baghdad, and Al-Wiyah, in the centre of the capital, according to officials from the ministries of ...

Wave of bombs hits Baghdad police, 17 dead

2011-10-12T01:30:10Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two suicide car bombers and a string of other attacks hit police across the Iraqi capital Baghdad Wednesday, killing at least 17 people and wounding 70, officials said.

One bomber rammed an explosives-filled car into a police station in central Alwiya district, killing 6 people including four policemen, and another bomber blew up his car a...

Bombs hit Iraqi police in Baghdad, 14 dead: sources

2011-10-12T00:00:12Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two suicide car bombers and a car bomb hit police in separate districts of the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 14 people and wounding around 60, interior ministry and police sources said.

The bombings underscored the ability of insurgents to hit multiple targets in the capital despite security improvements and a fall i...

Iraq forces storm police HQ after insurgent siege

2011-10-03T12:30:44Z

Iraqi forces stormed a police headquarters taken over by armed insurgents in western Iraq on Monday, ending a two-hour siege in which a town's police chief and four others were killed.

Gunmen disguised in police uniforms set off at least two explosions in mid-morning before overruning the Al-Baghdadi police headquarters in a compound that also houses the office of the town's mayor, officials said.

They seized 15 hostages, including the ...

Car bomb at Iraq funeral kills 10

2011-09-30T17:30:24Z

A car bomb ripped through a funeral procession near a mosque in central Iraq on Friday evening, killing at least 10 people, part of nationwide violence that left 14 dead.

The explosion occurred at around 5:30 pm (1430 GMT) outside the Nabi Ayub Shiite mosque, just south of Hilla, the capital of Babil province, as mourners were gathering for the funeral of Abdelamir

Victims of Baghdad mosque attack buried

2011-08-29T15:30:34Z

Dozens gathered at Baghdad's biggest Sunni mosque on Monday for the funeral of one of at least 28 people, including a lawmaker, killed in a suicide blast that has been blamed on Al-Qaeda.

The attack, the deadliest in Iraq in two weeks, came just days before the conclusion of the holy Muslim fasting month of Baghdad's biggest Sunni mosque on Monday for the funeral of one of at least 28 people, including a lawmaker, killed in a suicide blast there that has been blamed on Al-Qaeda.

The attack, the worst in Iraq in two weeks, came just days before the conclusion of the holy Muslim fasting month of Baghdad's biggest Sunni mosque, killing an MP and at least 27 others in an attack that was blamed on Al-Qaeda on Monday.

The blast was part of nationwide violence that left 35 dead on Sunday, just days before the conclusion of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and the BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The toll from a suicide bombing at one of the main Sunni mosques in Iraq's capital rose to at least 24 killed and over 30 wounded, a hospital official said on Sunday.

"We have received 24 bodies and more than 30 wounded. Ambulances and police vehicles are still bringing casualties," an o...

Attacks across Iraq kill 13, wound dozens

2011-08-25T15:00:21Z

BASRA (Reuters) - A series of suicide and car bombings struck cities across Iraq Thursday, killing at least 13 people and wounding dozens of others, security sources said.

In the southern oil hub of Basra, a car driven by a suicide bomber exploded near a Shi'ite mosque, killing at least three people and woundin...

Five killed in Iraq violence

2011-08-17T15:30:31Z

Violence in central and north Iraq on Wednesday left five people dead and 22 wounded, security officials said, just two days after the country's bloodiest day in more than a year.

In Wednesday's worst attack, two people were killed and seven wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up in the home of a police chief north of Baghdad, an interior ministry official said.

The attac...

Two Iraqi police killed in attack on jail: official

2011-08-14T23:30:06Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two suicide bombers attacked an Iraqi counter-terrorism unit in Tikrit city on Monday, killing at least two policemen and wounding six in a failed attempt to free al Qaeda prisoners, a police official said.

One...

Iraq civilian deaths in July match highest for 2011

2011-08-01T08:00:28Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The number of civilians killed by violence in Iraq rose to 159 in July from 155 in June, matching January with the highest toll so far for 2011, according to health ministry figures released Monday.

Violence has dropped sharply since the height of Iraq's sectarian conflict in 2006-2007, ...

Murderous Qaeda cell in Baghdad smashed: police

2011-07-24T15:30:20Z

Iraqi security forces have smashed an Al-Qaeda network allegedly responsible for more than 100 killings in Baghdad, an anti-terrorism official said on Sunday.

"Interior ministry forces dismantled (an) Al-Qaeda network that was responsible for more than 100 murders of policemen, soldiers, judges, officials and jewellers in Baghdad," said Major BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi security forces have arrested 16 suspected al Qaeda members accused of being behind more than 100 killings in the capital, a senior security official said Sunday.

General Ahmed Abu Ragheef, the Interior Ministry's head of internal affairs, accused the men of carrying out th...

Twin suicide attacks kill 35 north of Baghdad

2011-07-05T17:30:27Z

Twin suicide bombs ripped through the city of Taji north of Baghdad on Tuesday, killing at least 35 people, officials said, after Iraq suffered the year's deadliest month in June.

"Thirty-five people were killed and 28 wounded when a car bomb and an improvised bomb exploded simultaneously outside a government office where national identification cards are is...

Two explosions kill at least 27, wound 50 in Iraq

2011-07-05T03:00:13Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - 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 km (12 mil...

Ten killed, 28 wounded in Iraq attacks

2011-07-04T11:30:09Z

Bomb and gun attacks across Iraq on Monday killed at least 10 people and wounded 28, many of them policemen and soldiers, security officials said.

In Baghdad's Mansur neighbourhood, three policeman were killed and one wounded by an improvised bomb that also hurt three civilians, an interior ministry official said.

Another suicide bomber in the Baab al-Muadham neighb...

Wheelchair suicide bomber kills two in Iraq

2011-06-26T09:30:25Z

A suicide bomber in a wheelchair attacked a police station north of Baghdad on Sunday, killing two people and wounding 17, nine of them policemen, officials said.

"A suicide bomber detonated his explosives vest at the entrance to a police station, killing two civilians and wounding 17 people, including nine policemen in Tarmiyah," a town north of Baghdad, an interior ministry official said. A defence ministry official confirmed the repo...

Baghdad market bomb blitz kills 21

2011-06-23T17:30:34Z

Explosives packed into three shopping carts ripped through a crowded market in the Iraqi capital on Thursday, killing at least 21 people and wounding 107, an interior ministry official said.

And in other violence an American contractor was killed and four Iraqis died in separate attacks in the country.

But the bloodiest was the market bombing which came at rush hour on the eve of the Iraqi weekend.

"Explosives loaded in three shopping carts killed 21 people and wounded ...

Twin car bomb attacks on Iraqi governor kill 26

2011-06-21T11:30:26Z

Two suicide car bombs ripped through a guard post killing 26 people outside the provincial governor's home in Diwaniyah city on Tuesday, officials said, as violence surged across Iraq.

Most of the dead were policemen, a medic said, while a defence ministry official said 29 people were wounded in the powerful blasts.

A police colonel said Diwaniyah

Bomb hits French embassy convoy in Baghdad

2011-06-20T04:00:17Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Seven people were wounded on Monday when a French embassy convoy was hit by a make-shift bomb in Baghdad in the second attack on the mission's vehicles in a month, an embassy official and local police said.

The attack in Baghdad's al-Mesbah neighborhood underscored the still shaky security situation in the capital as the last ...

Gunmen storm Iraq council building, at least 8 dead

2011-06-14T01:30:36Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Gunmen on Tuesday stormed an Iraqi provincial council building in Baquba city -- northeast of Baghdad -- after two bombs exploded outside, killing at least 8 people and wounding 27 more, police and health officials said.

The attack in

19 Iraqis, two US troops dead in Baghdad bombs

2011-05-22T21:30:30Z

More than a dozen bomb attacks in and around Baghdad on Sunday left at least 19 Iraqis and two American soldiers dead and more than 80 other people wounded.

The series of attacks comes just days after blasts against police in a tense northern city killed 29 people, with just months to go before all US forces must withdraw from Iraq

Baghdad area hit by series of bombs, 13 killed

2011-05-22T03:30:06Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A string of explosions killed at least 13 people and wounded 74 in the Baghdad area on Sunday, including a suicide bombing targeting Iraqi soldiers north of the capital, security officials said.

Violence in Iraq has dropped sharply since the height of sectarian conflict four years ago, b...

Suicide bomber kills 7, wounds 10 in Iraq

2011-05-21T23:30:07Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed at least seven people and wounded 10 more, mostly policemen, after they arrived to investigate a car bombing north of Baghdad, an Iraqi Interior Ministry source said on Sunday.

(Reporting by Baghdad newsroom)

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Qaeda 'military leader' in Iraq arrested: ministry

2011-05-18T13:30:30Z

The Iraqi army arrested the alleged military leader of Al-Qaeda's offshoot in Iraq, Mikhlif Mohammed Hussein al-Azzawi, and three of his acolytes in a raid on Wednesday, the defence ministry said.

The arrests come less than three weeks after the killing of Al-Qaeda leader Baghdad church siege overpowered a policeman while being led to questioning, sparking a jail mutiny Sunday that killed six police, including a general, and 11 inmates.

The daring incident by suspected Al-Qaeda insurgents came as security was tightened in Iraq, where authorities fear reprisals after t...

Iraq suicide car bombing kills at least 21 police

2011-05-05T11:30:23Z

A suicide attacker blew up a bomb-filled car at a police station south of Baghdad, killing 21 policemen on Thursday, as Iraqi forces braced for Al-Qaeda revenge attacks after Osama bin Laden's death.

The attack, which also wounded at least 75 policemen, was the worst in Iraq in more than a...

Suicide car bomber kills more than 20 in Iraq

2011-05-05T09:30:31Z

HILLA, Iraq (Reuters) - A car bomber killed more than 20 people and wounded 80 on Thursday at a police building in the mainly Shi'ite city of Hilla, an official said, as Iraq braced for revenge attacks after U.S. commandos killed Osama bin Laden.

Iraq's army and pol...

Car bomb explosion in Iraq kills at least 15

2011-05-04T23:00:15Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A car bomb explosion killed at least 15 people and wounded 25 on Thursday in Iraq's southern city of Hilla, medical and police sources said.

A suicide bomber rammed his car into the entrance of a police headquarters in Hilla, 100 km (60 miles) south of Baghdad, the sources said.

An...

Iraq FM 'delighted' to see end of Bin Laden

2011-05-02T11:30:32Z

Iraq is "delighted" by the news that Osama bin Laden has been killed, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told AFP on Monday, noting that thousands of Iraqis had died "because of his ideologies."

"We, like many people in the world, are delighted to see an end to his mentality and his devious ideology," Zebari said.

"Iraq...

Iraq expects reprisals for bin Laden killing

2011-05-02T07:30:13Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's army and police went on high alert on Monday for possible revenge attacks in one of al Qaeda's major battlegrounds after U.S. forces killed Osama bin...

Iraqi judge killed, suicide attack claims seven

2011-04-30T17:30:29Z

Insurgents bombed an Iraqi judge's home, killing him and at least one of his children on Saturday, while a suicide blast in the north of the country killed seven people, including four soldiers.

Nationwide violence left at least 13 people dead, including an industry ministry official, in a third consecutive day of double-digit fatalities just months before a deadline for US forces to withdraw from Iraq completely.

10 killed in Iraq mosque suicide attack

2011-04-28T17:30:26Z

A suicide bomber killed 10 people as he blew himself up inside a Shiite mosque in central Iraq on Thursday, as nationwide violence left 16 dead, including senior police and army officers.

The flare-up comes with just months to go before US troops are to withdraw completely from Iraq and as a string of American officials have passed through Baghdad this month to press Iraq...

Suicide bomber kills 6, wounds 15 in Iraq mosque

2011-04-28T11:00:17Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) -At least six people were killed and 15 wounded on Thursday when a suicide bomber blew himself up inside a mosque in Iraq's restive Diyala province, a security official said.

The attack took place soon after evening...

Angry Iraqis bury dead from Tikrit carnage

2011-03-30T14:30:41Z

Grieving residents of Tikrit buried their dead on Wednesday, enraged that a band of gunmen and suicide bombers had managed to breach security to launch an assault a building in which 58 people were killed.

A curfew imposed Tuesday, shortly after the early afternoon attack on the provincial council building, remained in force. Streets were deserted and shops shuttered in the city that was former dictator

58 dead in Tikrit attack: Iraq police

2011-03-29T15:30:22Z

Security forces stormed the provincial council building in former dictator Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit on Tuesday after an hours-long shootout with gunmen that left 58 dead and 97 wounded, a police official said.

"The latest toll is 58 dead and 97 wounded, and there are many with serious injuries, Six of the dead were the attackers," said the official, stationed at Tikrit...

9 killed in suicide attack on Iraq army base

2011-03-14T05:30:21Z

A suicide attacker rammed a truck packed with explosives into an army barracks in Iraq's Diyala province Monday, killing at least nine troops and wounding 14 others, a security official said.

The attack took place at around 6:00 am (0300 GMT) at an army base at Kanaan, some 70 kilometres (43 miles) northeast of Baghdad, the official said.

"At least nine sol...

PM urges Iraqis not to attend Baghdad demos

2011-02-24T10:30:31Z

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called on Iraqis not to participate in massive planned demonstrations in Baghdad on Friday, describing their organisers as insurgents and loyalists of Saddam Hussein.

His remarks were markedly stronger than warnings issued by Iraqi security officials, who have claimed that the protests w...

Suicide bomber kills 30 in Iraq pilgrim attack

2011-02-12T13:30:08Z

A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a bus filled with Shiite pilgrims returning from mourning rituals in the Iraqi city of Samarra on Saturday, killing at least 30 people, hospital sources said.

"The suicide bomber quickly ran into the bus when it stopped at a checkpoint several kilometres (miles) outside Samarra, and detonated his vest inside the vehicle," a police official said.

"The latest death toll is 30 wounded, among th...

Scores of bodies unearthed at Iraq grave site

2011-02-12T09:00:04Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi authorities have unearthed more than 150 bodies in an area northeast of Baghdad that saw some of the worst fighting in the war, police and local officials said Saturday.

A military source and a local tribal leader said the bodies were al-Qaeda fighters buried i...

Twin attacks rock west Iraq, 12 dead nationwide

2011-02-03T16:31:18Z

A car bomb followed by a suicide attack on Thursday in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi killed at least eight people, including five policemen, as part of nationwide violence that left 12 dead.

The blasts came just days after figures showed more people died in violence in January than any of the previous three months, shattering the relative calm that followed Prime Minister ...

Bomb at Iraq funeral kills 35, clashes erupt

2011-01-27T07:00:11Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A car bomb exploded at a funeral wake in a Shi'ite area of Iraq's capital on Thursday, killing at least 35 people, wounding dozens and triggering clashes between angry residents and police, health and security sources said.

The blast capped a bloody two weeks as suspected insurgents chal...

Triple attacks on Shiite pilgrims in Iraq kill 12

2011-01-24T10:30:34Z

Three car bombs ripped through crowds near Iraq's shrine city of Karbala on Monday, killing 12 people and wounding dozens in fresh attacks on pilgrims arriving for religious rituals.

"There were three car bomb explosions, two at 8:30 AM (05:30 GMT) and another 30 minutes later," said Nusayef Jassem, the provincial vice chief.

"Twelve people were killed and 150 wounded in the attacks," he sai...

Iraq football victory sparks joy on Baghdad streets

2011-01-20T09:30:27Z

Iraq's qualification for the quarter-finals of the Asia Cup sparked hope of a repeat of its 2007 success, after jubilant fans lit up the Baghdad night sky with fireworks and bullets.

The national side's qualification for the knock-out round, setting up a clash with Australia, came after a 1-0 vic...

Suicide bomber kills 50 at Iraq police centre

2011-01-18T15:30:24Z

A suicide bomber blew himself up and killed 50 people in a crowd waiting outside a police recruitment centre in the Iraqi city of Tikrit on Tuesday, in the bloodiest attack in more than two months.

The blast, which also wounded up to 150, was the first major strike in Iraq since the formation of a new government on December 21 and recalled an August attack against an army recruitment centre in

Suicide bomber kills 14 police recruits in Iraq

2011-01-18T00:30:06Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber wearing a vest filled with explosives attacked a crowd of Iraqi police recruits on Tuesday in former dictator Saddam Hussein's hometown of Iraq claimed the lives of a policeman and a woman and wounded 15 other people on Sunday, security and medical officials said.

One policeman was killed and four others were wounded when gunmen attacked a checkpoint in Al-Filahat area, 10 kilometres (six miles) west of Fallujah, which is itself west of Baghdad...

Suicide bombers hit police compound in Iraq's Mosul

2010-12-28T22:30:07Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two suicide bombers attacked a police battalion in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on Wednesday and killed the commander, police sources said.

The sources said two attackers, wearing explosive vests, detonated their vests in the room of Lieutenant Colonel Shamil Ahm...

Two explosions kill 6, wound 15 in Iraq's Ramadi

2010-12-27T00:00:09Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two suicide car bombers targeting a government compound in the Iraqi town of Ramadi killed at least six people and wounded 15 on Monday, the governor for the western province of Anbar said.

Anbar

Iraqi kills daughter who wanted to be suicide bomber

2010-12-24T07:30:22Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - An Iraqi man killed and buried his teenaged daughter after learning she had intended to become a suicide bomber for al Qaeda, a security official said on Friday.

Iraqi security forces raided the man's house in Mandili, 100 km (60 miles) northeast of Baghdad, to searc...

Roadside bombs kills 3, wound 32 in Iraq

2010-12-14T08:00:17Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two roadside bombs targeting Shi'ite pilgrims in Iraq killed three people and wounded at least 32 others on Tuesday ahead of a Shi'ite religious event, Interior Ministry and police sources said.

One of the blasts struck a Shi'ite procession in the

Suicide bomber kills 4, wounds 17 in Iraq

2010-12-13T07:30:24Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Four people were killed and 17 wounded by a suicide bomber who blew himself up near a group of Shi'ite pilgrims in a town northeast of Iraq's capital on Monday, days before one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest events.

The bomber detonated his explosive vest after a policeman stopp...

Six police among 14 killed in Iraq suicide attacks

2010-12-12T13:30:43Z

Suicide attacks targeting a police checkpoint and a Shiite Muslim procession in western and central Iraq killed up to 14 people on Sunday, including six policemen and a journalist.

The violence comes two weeks ahead of a deadline for premier-designate Nuri al-Maliki to form a cabinet in a bid to end months of government impasse, and days before the climax of the Shiite...

Mahir al-Zubaydi

2010-11-30T13:53:27Z

...

Iraq violence kills nine

2010-11-14T14:30:37Z

In the deadliest attack, a roadside bomb killed three soldiers in a town south of the ethnically mixed northern oil hub of Kirkuk, police Colonel Ahmed al-Barazanchi said.

"An IED (improvised explosive device) earlier today hit a dismounted army patrol in Rashad," he said. "Three soldiers were killed."

Also near Kirkuk in the town of Leylan, a drive-by shooting killed a civilian, Barazanchi said. It was unc...

Iraq violence kills eight

2010-11-14T08:30:28Z

In the deadliest attack, a roadside bomb killed three soldiers in a town south of the ethnically mixed northern oil hub of Kirkuk, police Colonel Ahmed al-Barazanchi said.

"An IED (improvised explosive device) earlier today hit a dismounted army patrol in Rashad," he said. "Three soldiers were killed."

Also near Kirkuk in the town of Leylan, a drive-by shooting killed a civilian, Barazanchi said. It was unc...

Egypt Copts scrap pope celebration after Iraq church attack

2010-11-13T16:30:45Z

Al-Qaeda's branch in Iraq said its gunmen carried out the October 31 attack in the Iraqi capital and threatened to target the region's Christians if the Coptic church did not release two women rumoured to have converted to Islam.

A source in the Coptic church, quoted by MENA, denied the 39th anniversary of Shenuda's ordination as pope to be held in Cairo later on Saturd...

Female Soccer Suicide Bomber

2010-11-30T13:32:38Z

...

Poetry: The Thousand Year War

2010-11-29T16:07:47Z

...

Car bombings in Iraq kill 18

2010-11-08T08:00:23Z

Police and local officials said the attacks also wounded 58 people, mostly Iranian pilgrims.

In Karbala, a suicide bomber pulled up his booby-trapped vehicle alongside a bus carrying pilgrims from neighbouring Iran then detonated his payload, police officials said.

The explosion killed 10 people, four of them Iranians, and wounded another 42, hospital officials said.

The b...

Egypt's Mubarak vows to protect Copts after Qaeda threat

2010-11-06T14:00:24Z

An Al-Qaeda group, claiming responsibility for a bloody hostage taking in a Baghdad church on Sunday, threatened to target the region's Christians if the Coptic church did not release two women rumoured to have converted to Islam.

Mubarak told Pope Shenouda III in a phone call that he rejected "push...

US commander says Qaeda still a threat in Iraq

2010-11-06T14:00:16Z

Brigadier General Jeffrey Buchanan said that a deadly attack in Baghdad targeting Christians and explosions in Shiite neighbourhoods across the capital over the past week demonstrated that Al-Qaeda remained deadly.

The attacks "demonstrate that Al-Qaeda remains determined and dangerous," said Buchanan, director for strategy for Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), the local branch of Osama bin Laden's jihadist network.

The group had earlier claimed r...

A look at major attacks in Iraq this year

2010-11-02T14:00:50Z

Tuesday's bomb and mortar strikes around Baghdad are latest in year of deadly attacks

A look at major attacks in Iraq in 2010:

_ Nov. 2 — Bombings and mortar strikes across Baghdad's mostly Shiite neighborhoods kill 76.

_ Oct. 31 — Militant siege of Baghdad church service kills 58.

_ Oct. 29 — suicide bombing at popular Baghdad cafe kills 26.

At least 7 hostages killed in rescue from Iraq church

2010-10-31T16:00:10Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - At least seven Iraqi Catholics died on Sunday when police stormed a Baghdad church where gunmen were holding dozens of parishioners hostage, threatening to kill them if al Qaeda prisoners were not released.

The BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber blew himself up in an Iraqi cafe usually packed with Shi'ite Kurds in a town northeast of Baghdad on Friday, killing at least 22 people and wounding 60, officials said.

The blast in the Diyala town of BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The number of people killed when a suicide bomber attacked an Iraqi cafe northeast of Baghdad on Friday reached 22, with more than 45 injured, a provincial official said.

Muthana al-Timimi, head of the security committee of the Diyala provi...

Iraq al Qaeda more lethal as homegrown insurgency

2010-10-26T06:00:15Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Al Qaeda's Iraqi branch has evolved into a homegrown, more lethal and bolder insurgency comprised of Iraqi fighters hardened in U.S. prisons and posing a challenge to Iraqi forces, military officials say.

The insurgency has been strategically weakened by...

Iraqi soldier killed in suicide attack on US military convoy

2010-10-18T12:00:17Z

The soldier who died had been traveling in a car with three other off-duty servicemen who were wounded, the official said.

Another three wounded were civilians from a separate vehicle, he said, adding none of the US servicemen was harmed.

A bomb attack earlier Monday in central Baghdad on a government convoy killed a provincial councillor and wounded eight other people, including three bodyguards, an interior ministry...

Suicide bombs, kills nine people and injure 29 others

2010-11-03T00:16:28Z

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Iraq broadcasts confessions by al Qaeda insurgents

2010-10-10T09:00:16Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two men arrested in Iraq over suicide bomb attacks on embassies and a foreign television office were shown on state TV Sunday confessing that they worked for al Qaeda.

The confessions, broadcast widely on several local channels, were aired ...

Twin Baghdad car bombs kill 29

2010-09-21T13:43:10Z

Two near-simultaneous car bombs rocked the Iraqi capital on Sunday, killing at least 29 people and wounding 111 in the city's deadliest day in a month.

The violence, which saw 38 people killed across the country, was the worst to hit Iraq since US troops declared an official end to combat operations on September 1, and comes with no new government yet formed since a March poll.

The twin blasts struck near the <...

Three bombs kill 18, wound scores in Iraq

2010-09-21T13:20:44Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Three car bombs killed at least 18 people and wounded scores in Iraq on Sunday as tension runs high six months after an election that no one won outright and weeks after U.S. troops ended combat operations.

One blast targeting a national security office killed a...

Twin Baghdad car bombs kill at least 29

2010-09-21T13:20:23Z

Two near-simultaneous car bombs rocked the Iraqi capital on Sunday, killing at least 29 people and wounding 111 in the city's deadliest day in a month.

The violence was the worst to hit Iraq since US troops declared an official end to combat operations on September 1, and comes with no new government yet formed since a March general election.

The twin blasts struck near the Aden junction in north B...

At least 29 killed in twin Baghdad car bombs

2010-09-21T13:10:31Z

Two near-simultaneous car bombs rocked Baghdad on Sunday killing at least 29 people and wounding 111 in the Iraqi capital's deadliest day in a month.

The twin blasts struck near the Aden junction in north Baghdad and in the residential district of Mansur in the west of the capital at around 10:10 am (0810 GMT), AFP journalists and security officials said.

An interior ministry official put the death toll at 29 -- 19 di...

At least 18 killed in twin Baghdad car bombs

2010-09-21T13:04:53Z

Two near-simultaneous car bombs rocked Baghdad on Sunday killing at least 18 people and wounding 100 in the capital's deadliest day in a month.

The twin blasts hit the Aden junction in north Baghdad and the residential district of Mansur in the west of the capital at around 10:10 am (0810 GMT), AFP journalists and security officials said.

An interior ministry official put the death toll at 18, most of whom were killed...

31 dead after car blasts in Baghdad

2010-09-21T11:55:13Z

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Twin Baghdad car bombs kill 31, wound dozens

2010-11-02T12:27:18Z

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23 dead after car blasts in Baghdad

2010-09-21T11:55:01Z

...

The Hurt Locker

2010-11-03T08:46:39Z

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Iraqi Al Qaeda group says it behind army base raid

2010-09-07T00:40:12Z

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Al Qaeda's Iraqi affiliate claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a daylight raid by suicide bombers on an army base in central Baghdad in which 12 people died.

U.S. forces became involved in Sunday's fighting less than a week after formally ending combat...

Iraqi troops in spotlight as Baghdad bombers kill 12

2010-09-05T20:20:17Z

Iraqi security forces were under the spotlight Monday after a coordinated suicide attack on an army complex killed 12 people, with US troops among those who fired back in a bid to repel the operation.

American involvement in the response to Sunday's attack was the first reported such engagement for US forces in Baghdad since they declared an official end to combat op...

Iraq

2010-12-28T09:30:31Z

An Iraqi policeman stands guard while hundreds of vehicles are in queue, waiting to be searched, at a checkpoint in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2010. Security officials are investigating the possibility of removing some of the hundreds of checkpoints across the city, in a sign of the improving security situation. The checkpoints are designed to catch insurgents, but they also slow down traffic in the alrea...

Iraq US Troops Christmas

2010-12-24T14:01:10Z

U.S .troops are seen lighting candles during a Christmas Eve mass in a chapel at an American base in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Dec. 24, 2010. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

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Iraq Security

2010-12-21T08:03:13Z

Iraqi police officers are seen at a checkpoint in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2010. The Iraqi government tightened its security measures as Iraqi lawmakers unanimously approved a new government to be headed by incumbent Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. (AP Photo/Hadi M...

Iraq Violence

2010-12-20T06:30:43Z

Iraqi security forces stand guard as a damaged vehicle is towed away after a bomb attack in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Dec. 20, 2010. A roadside bomb missed a passing police patrol in Baghdad's central commercial area of Karrada, wounded several civilians, police said. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)