BAGHDAD, Aug. 14, 2008
Female Suicide Bomber Kills 26 In Iraq
Bombs Target Shiite Pilgrims South Of Baghdad During Major Religious Festival
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Iraq has seen a dramatic increase in the number of female suicide bombers in 2008. (CBS)
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Play CBS Video Video Rise In Female Suicide Bombers According to the U.S., women have carried out at least 27 suicide bomb attacks this year, more than triple the number in 2007. Richard Roth reports on this growing terrorist trend.
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Photo Essay Iraq Suicide Attacks Bombs strike Shiite pilgrimage in Baghdad and Kurdish rally in Kirkuk.
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Photo Essay Week In Iraq Photos A daily diary with scenes of the latest attacks and snapshots from the effort to rebuild a nation.
The woman blew herself up among a group of pilgrims resting on the side of the road in Iskandariyah as women were cooking dinner, men were praying and children were playing nearby, a witness said.
"Minutes after I passed the resting spot, I heard a big explosion. I turned my head back and saw big flames," said Ahmed al-Saadi, a 34-year-old carpenter from Baghdad's Sadr City district.
"We rushed to the site and saw charred bodies, while wounded people were crying for help. Pots and burnt prayer rugs were scattered all over the place," he said.
The Shabaniyah festival, which climaxes over the weekend, marks the birth of Mohammed al-Mahdi, the 12th Shiite imam, who disappeared in the ninth century. Devout Shiites believe he will return to Earth to restore peace and harmony.
At least 26 people were killed and 75 wounded in the attack, a senior police official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information.
He said police believed the bomber was a woman based on witness reports.
Iskandariyah, 30 miles south of the capital, was one of the main cities in an area dubbed the triangle of death for much of the war. But it has seen a recent decline in violence that the U.S. military has attributed to a Sunni movement against al Qaeda in Iraq, as well as an influx of American troops.
Sporadic attacks continue to hit the area, however.
On Feb. 24, another suicide bomber killed at least 40 Shiite pilgrims near Iskandariyah as they were en route for another religious festival.
Shiite pilgrims also faced violence in Baghdad on Thursday.
A roadside bomb exploded in the southeastern district of Zafaraniyah, killing one Iraqi and wounding as many as nine others, including six pilgrims, officials said.
Lt. Col. Steve Stover, a spokesman for U.S. forces in Baghdad, blamed a "special groups cell in the area" for the attack, saying it was seeking to heighten public unrest.
The U.S. military uses the term special groups to refer to Shiite extremists it says are backed by Iran and refusing to adhere to a cease-fire by anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
Police said another roadside bomb killed one pilgrim and wounded seven others - all young men - in the central Alwiya district. But Stover said that bomb was targeting a U.S. patrol and caused no injuries.
Authorities have fortified the capital and Karbala, 50 miles to the south, to prevent extremists from infiltrating the main areas where the rituals are performed. But pilgrims remain vulnerable as they walk on foot to the shrines.
Shiite religious festivals have often been targeted by militants from al Qaeda in Iraq, the country's deadliest Sunni terror group.
The most recent attack against Shiite pilgrims was last month, when three female suicide bombers struck Shiite pilgrims in nearly simultaneous bombings in Baghdad, killing at least 32 people and wounding more than 100.
On Thursday, Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, the chief military spokesman for Baghdad, issued several regulations designed to defuse sectarian tensions during the journey to Karbala. The route passes through Sunni areas just south of the capital.
The order banned members of the Shiite-dominated security forces deployed along the route from plastering their vehicles with religious and political symbols - like images of Shiite saints or Shiite party posters - and from joining pilgrims in their religious chants. Security personnel, al-Moussawi said, must stick to the national anthem and fly the national flag from their vehicles.
Al-Moussawi, who announced the regulations on state television, also said pilgrims must not carry arms and those traveling on foot mustn't walk about after dark. He warned against rumors that could sow panic and against accepting food from strangers.
In other developments:
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- Pick up ( Hang ) the families of all suicide bombers and the problem will stop.
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- These poor suicide bombers must lead miserable lives to feel that their only recourse against the people destroying their lives is a suicide attack. The US in their greed in exploiting other countries is making the lives of millions a misery.
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- jafari1 - I respect your opinion.
Thank-you for speaking out against the Muslim extremists. If more in your religion were to do so, it would garner a GREAT deal more of respect from those of us that don''t know about your religion. At some point, we have to start wondering if those not speaking out condone what is happening.
Peace be with you. - Reply to this comment
- Posted by jafari1 at 03:48 PM : Aug 16, 2008
The Truth about Islamic Crusades and Imperialism
Historical facts say that Islam has been imperialistic%u2014and would still like to be, if only for religious reasons. Many Muslim clerics, scholars, and activists, for example, would like to impose Islamic law around the world. Historical facts say that Islam, including Muhammad, launched their own Crusades against Christianity long before the European Crusades.
http://www.americanthinker.com/2005/11/the_truth_about_islamic_crusad.html
http://www.americanthinker.com/2004/08/the_muslim_crusades.html
http://www.terrorismawareness.org/what-really-happened/
the truth about fascist nazi terrorislam...
http://www.terrorismawareness.org/what-really-happened/
Islamic origins
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/pdf/compass/hico_058.pdf
Origin of Islam
http://www.allaboutreligion.org/origin-of-islam.htm
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Origin+of Islam%3A Secular History - Reply to this comment
- Posted by jafari1 at 03:48 PM : Aug 16, 2008
the ENDLESS war Muhammad ali baba started rages on 1400 years later...
623 - Battle of Waddan
623 - Battle of Safwan
623 - Battle of Dul-''Ashir
624 - Muhammad and converts begin raids on caravans to fund the movement.
624 - Zakat becomes mandatory
624 - Battle of Badr
624 - Battle of Bani Salim
624 - Battle of Eid-ul-Fitr and Zakat-ul-Fitr
624 - Battle of Bani Qainuqa''
624 - Battle of Sawiq
624 - Battle of Ghatfan
624 - Battle of Bahran
625 - Battle of Uhud. 70 Muslims are killed.
625 - Battle of Humra-ul-Asad
625 - Battle of Banu Nudair
625 - Battle of Dhatur-Riqa
626 - Battle of Badru-Ukhra
626 - Battle of Dumatul-Jandal
626 - Battle of Banu Mustalaq Nikah
627 - Battle of the Trench
627 - Battle of Ahzab
627 - Battle of Bani Quraiza
627 - Battle of Bani Lahyan
627 - Battle of Ghaiba
627 - Battle of Khaibar
628 - Muhammad signs treaty with Quraish.
630 - Muhammad conquers Mecca.
630 - Battle of Hunsin.
630 - Battle of Tabuk
632 - Muhammad dies.
http://www.carm.org/islam/islam_chronology.htm - Reply to this comment
- Posted by jafari1 at 03:48 PM : Aug 16, 2008
please inform us,,, what religion did muhammad practice before he tried to convert to judaism??? - Reply to this comment
- i am muslim and i am not not forced to believe, i had a choice, and i decided, why, because it makes the most sense to me. it excepts jesus as one of the highest greatest prophets who will return to earth at the end of time and born from the holy virgin mary. if it did not say these things in the quran, i would not have been a believer. the strange thing is if you poll the american people, most don''t know what we believe. as for the radical muslims killing in the name of my religion, *** you all!
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- Some people suggested that explosions around Iraq are mostly caused by US cruise missiles attack not suicide bombers.
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- HUSSEIN IS NO COMMANDER IN CHIEF,,, lol..Posted by trrrorislamx ..It''s too bad ignorance isn''t painful
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- These women suicide bombers are one of the reasons we should have just carpet bombed the whole region and started a new blood line.obamma441 could have been the big I Pooch I.
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