Baghdad hit by wave of attacks; 57 killed

Iraqi security forces inspect a crater caused by a car bomb attack in the neighborhood of Karrada in Baghdad, Iraq, Dec. 22, 2011. / AP

Updated at 4:39 a.m. Eastern.

BAGHDAD - A wave of bombings ripped across Baghdad on Thursday morning, killing at least 57 people and injuring nearly 200 in the worst violence Iraq has seen for months. The bloodbath comes just days after American forces left the country.

The blasts also came on the heels of a political crisis between Iraq's Sunni and Shiite factions that erupted this weekend. The political spat, which pits Iraq's Shiite prime minister against the highest-ranking Sunni political leader, has raised fears that Iraq's sectarian wounds will be reopened during a fragile time when Iraq is finally navigating its own political future without U.S. military support.

While the string of explosions was likely not a direct response to the political Sunni-Shiite confrontation, it will ratchet up tensions at a time when many Iraqis are already worried about security. If continued, it could lead to the same type of tit-for-tat attacks that characterized the insurgency years ago.

Iraqi officials said at least 14 blasts went off early Thursday morning in 11 neighborhoods around the city. The explosions ranged from blasts from sticky bombs attached to cars to roadside bombs and vehicles packed with explosives. There was at least one suicide bombing among the attacks.

Most of the attacks appeared to hit Shiite neighborhoods although some Sunni areas were also targeted.

The spokesman for the Iraqi health ministry put the death toll at 57 and said at least 176 people were also injured. He did not have a neighborhood by neighborhood breakdown for where the fatalities and the injuries occurred.

Earlier reports indicated that the worst of the violence occurred in al-Amal neighborhood where seven people were killed in a blast that appeared to target rescuers and officials who came to the scene after a previous explosion. At least four people were killed in one western Baghdad neighborhood when two roadside bombs exploded.

All the information came from police and hospital officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

In the southwestern neighborhood of Karrada, where a blast ripped through a side street near the Integrity Commission headquarters, sirens could be heard as ambulances rushed to the scene and a large plume of smoke rose over the explosion site.

"My baby was sleeping in her bed. Shards of glass have fallen on our heads. Her father hugged her and carried her. She is now scared in the next room," said one woman in western Baghdad who identified herself as Um Hanin. "All countries are stable. Why don't we have security and stability?"

While Baghdad and Iraq have gotten much safer over the years, explosions like Thursday's are still commonplace. They come at a precarious time in Iraq's political history, just days after American troops pulled out of Iraq.

Video: U.S. troops home from Iraq for Christmas

Fears of renewed sectarian violence were thrust back to the forefront this week as the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki accused Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi of running a hit squad that targeted government officials. Al-Maliki is also pushing for a vote of no-confidence against another Sunni politician, the deputy prime minister Saleh al-Mutlaq.

Iraq PM tells Kurds to hand over Sunni VP

Many Sunnis fear that this is part of a wider campaign to go after Sunni political figures in general and shore up Shiite control across the country at a critical time when all American troops have left Iraq.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the morning's violence. But the coordinated nature of the assault and the fact that the attacks took place in numerous neighborhoods suggested a planning capability only available to al Qaeda in Iraq.

Many of the neighborhoods were also Shiite areas which are a favorite target of al Qaeda. The Sunni extremist group often targets Shiites who they believe are not true Muslims.

Al Qaeda in Iraq is severely debilitated from its previous strength in the early years of the war, but is still able to launch coordinated and deadly assaults from time to time.

U.S. military officials have said they're worried about a resurgence of al Qaeda after the American military leaves the country. If that happens, it could lead Shiite militants to fight back and attack Sunni targets, thus sending Iraq back to the sectarian violence it experienced just a few years ago.

[SteveM12a]

And once again obozo SCREWS up royally. I bet he and the rest of the dimoRats are so proud that our boys and girls spilled their blood so obozo could lose the war

[smirk5]

The surge could have worked if we had only sent even more troops and chose to stay forever. "Operation FUBAR" would have been a more apt name for the trillion dollar U.S. adventure in Iraq.

[KristenSuzanne]

Well, in November 2012, this article and others like it from this MSM outlet will be down the memory hole...meaning no one here will even think of leaving Iraq as anything other than a success for the Bamster...he's claimed credit for what GWB did and any successes there were...that's already down that memory hole at least for Obama...it's all about him isn't it??

[take_a_number]

I am sure glad they ask the US to leave their soil there might have been some Americans killed by stupid third world people living in the dark ages.

[talkin2u]

One very screwed up part of the planet. Religion once again at the root of violence and evil. A country that could flourish, families prosper and a society coming of age in the modern era is ruined by ignorant, uneducated and disgusting people who only want to destroy rather than build a future for their people. It's a tragedy that the world community can't fix.

[smirk5]

The Sunni/Shia civil war in Iraq has to play out. There has to be a clear winner and a clear loser. We slowed it way down by appeasing Sunni leaders with cash payments prior to an increased troop presence. But, the animosity will be there for generations. If we left a few years ago, now, or 50 years in the future, it wouldn't have made a difference. Once the great mistake of invading had been made, the wheels were set in motion.

[take_a_number]

Did we hear about these daily bombings before the cia killed ole whats his name and installed their puppet?

[smittyc]

Oh well these things happen, none of our business.

[fedup12]

yep!

[sallychicago]

We knew this was coming didn't we? So, if there's a full fledged civil war do we rush the troops in again?

[fedup12]

No.

[involved_indi]

Not surprising that Obama's vaunted foreign policy decisions have resulted in a vacuum in Iraq that will be filled by Iran. His decision to exit Iraq the way he did will go down as a huge mistake and it won't take 10 years for knowledgable people to come to that conclusion either.

[smirk5]

Actually, Bush signed the withdrawal agreement. Obama is just following through. The big mistake was to invade in the first place. Never forget that.

[Atlanticum]

Why don't you go back, help out there sport?

Joe Biden was right. Separate them into neutral states and then run.

[rubberrezi]

Thank the BUSH administration for all the AMERICAN lives lost and torn apart over the past 10 years for ABSOLUTELY NOTHING but some oil to further line their pockets!!!

[Dgunner]

I wondered for a while how long it would take for a people to kill themselves off? Now I am not sure I was thinking five years but now maybe sooner . Sooner the better.The people over there pretending to be dumb will die last. The true dumb ones go pretty quick maybe as soon as next year.