Dozens Dead in Baghdad Mosque Blast

More than 200 hurt as violence against Shia holy sites continues
By Marie Morris,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 19, 2007 11:39 AM CDT
Dozens Dead in Baghdad Mosque Blast
Iraqis view the damaged Khillani mosque, a main Shiite mosque in central Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, June 19, 2007. A truck bomb struck a Shiite mosque Tuesday in central Baghdad, killing 75 people and wounding more than 200, even as about 10,000 U.S. soldiers northeast of the capital used heavily armored...   (Associated Press)

A car bomb exploded near a Shia mosque in Baghdad today just as afternoon prayers were ending, killing at least 75. More than 200 people were injured in the blast, which sent smoke billowing over the central city. The explosion came 2 days after officials lifted a curfew imposed following the destruction of a Shia shrine in Samarra.

The mosque's imam blamed the attack on "sick souls," the AP reported, and said bodies were still being pulled from the rubble. Meanwhile, north of Baghdad in Diyala province, 10,000 US troops launched a campaign to root out Al-Qaeda operatives; the Sunni stronghold is believed to be a source of the car bombs that have plagued Baghdad. (More Baghdad stories.)

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