Libertarian_Guard
16th September 2013, 02:44 PM
A fresh wave of bombs has killed more than 40 people across Iraq - mostly targeting Shia areas - officials say.
The deadliest was in the city of Hilla, south of the capital Baghdad, where two car bombs at a market killed at least 15 civilians.
Other bombs hit Baghdad itself as well as Basra, Nasiriya and Karbala in the south of the country.
Sectarian violence has surged across Iraq in recent months, reaching its highest level since 2008.
More than 5,000 people have been killed so far this year in Iraq, 800 of them in August alone, according to the United Nations.
On Saturday, more than 20 people died when a suicide bomber targeted the funeral of a member of the Shabak people near Mosul, the capital of Nineveh province. The Shabak - about 50,000 people who largely follow a faith considered an offshoot of Shia Islam - are frequently targeted in attacks by Sunni militants.
And on Friday, at least 30 people died in a bomb attack on a Sunni mosque in the central city of Baquba.
In recent weeks, Iraqi security forces have reportedly arrested hundreds of alleged al-Qaeda members in and around Baghdad as part of a campaign the Shia-led government is calling "Revenge for the martyrs".
But the operations, which have taken place mostly in Sunni districts, have angered the Sunni community and failed to halt the violence.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-24100632
The deadliest was in the city of Hilla, south of the capital Baghdad, where two car bombs at a market killed at least 15 civilians.
Other bombs hit Baghdad itself as well as Basra, Nasiriya and Karbala in the south of the country.
Sectarian violence has surged across Iraq in recent months, reaching its highest level since 2008.
More than 5,000 people have been killed so far this year in Iraq, 800 of them in August alone, according to the United Nations.
On Saturday, more than 20 people died when a suicide bomber targeted the funeral of a member of the Shabak people near Mosul, the capital of Nineveh province. The Shabak - about 50,000 people who largely follow a faith considered an offshoot of Shia Islam - are frequently targeted in attacks by Sunni militants.
And on Friday, at least 30 people died in a bomb attack on a Sunni mosque in the central city of Baquba.
In recent weeks, Iraqi security forces have reportedly arrested hundreds of alleged al-Qaeda members in and around Baghdad as part of a campaign the Shia-led government is calling "Revenge for the martyrs".
But the operations, which have taken place mostly in Sunni districts, have angered the Sunni community and failed to halt the violence.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-24100632