BAGHDAD, Aug. 14, 2008
Female Suicide Bomber Kills 26 In Iraq
Bombs Target Shiite Pilgrims South Of Baghdad During Major Religious Festival
-
Iraq has seen a dramatic increase in the number of female suicide bombers in 2008. (CBS)
-
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.
-
Photo Essay Iraq Suicide Attacks Bombs strike Shiite pilgrimage in Baghdad and Kurdish rally in Kirkuk.
-
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:
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Add a Comment See all 88 Comments
- Pick up ( Hang ) the families of all suicide bombers and the problem will stop.
- Reply to this comment
- 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.
- Reply to this comment
- 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!
- Reply to this comment
- Some people suggested that explosions around Iraq are mostly caused by US cruise missiles attack not suicide bombers.
- Reply to this comment
- HUSSEIN IS NO COMMANDER IN CHIEF,,, lol..Posted by trrrorislamx ..It''s too bad ignorance isn''t painful
- Reply to this comment
- 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.
- Reply to this comment
- Posted by imprisonkarl at 09:12 AM : Aug 16, 2008
You must get tired carrying that big brain around
Check out the big brain on nancy,,, lol
Jules: Do you know what they call a Quarter Pounder with cheese in France?
Brett: No.
Jules: Tell him, Vincent.
Vincent: Royale with cheese.
Jules: Royale with cheese. Do you know why they call it a Royale with cheese?
Brett: Because of the metric system?
Jules: Check out the big brain on Brett. You one smart ************.
Pulp Fiction (1994)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110912/quotes - Reply to this comment
- terrorislamvx --
Your postings are a good advertisement for the anti-depressant drug Effexor -- the one that the Rethuglicans Party chose as its campaign slogan: The Change You Deserve! It sounds as if you''re a prime candidate for a prescription for it!
So, the question is, are you trying to prove just how sexually dysfunctional you really are, by posting as you do, or are you just competing in the McSame Frequent Flyer Miles contest to see who can spread the most lies/talking points over the internet?
Or is this the way you get off?
BTW, somewhere Joseph Goebbles is smiling -- his legacy lives on thru you, and other like-minded ilk. - Reply to this comment
- Can someone tell me what they are supposed to do?....
Why does America believe that Democracy is the righteous path? For certain it is not! Democracy is based on the principle that majority rule. ... What then happens to what is right? It gets relegated to the minority who hold the noble principle.
The point I am trying to establish is that the West always sees what it does as sophisticated and civilized. The truth is if you use a spoon or fork, you are taking advantage of nature for personal gain. Better to eat with hands then and leave nature and natural resources be. When you strive to make life easy for you, you make it difficult for nature(because of depletion, pollution etc...)
Posted by TomMarAlem19 at 11:59 PM : Aug 15, 2008
---
Wow, where do I begin? Such inane babbling probably can''t be addressed in one comment. So majority rule (democracy)is wrong? The alternative is minority rule (communism/socialism/fascism). Is that somehow better?! That''s just lunacy!
Then you start decrying our dominion over the planet. Like it or not, the Bible tells us that God clearly gives us dominion over the earth. Yes, we need to be good stewards of it, but your wacko-environmental garbage is the stuff of nutjobs. Extreme environmentalism is a ruse for power and income redistribution - actually quite in line with your comments supporting forms of government other than democracy. We certainly don''t need idiots like you. - Reply to this comment
- I''''d love to be able to have a sit down with one of these people. Just so I can say I had a conversation with one of the craziest people on earth.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted by whiskyrokkr at 02:56 AM : Aug 16, 2008
That''s what Obama wants to do with Ahmadenijad. With no pre-conditions, of course. - Reply to this comment
- You''d think these maniac muslims would wake up and realize just how NON-peaceful that religion really is one of these days.
Most Muslims stay in that religion because of fear...because the penalty for leaving islam in most instances is death.
These Muslims have no choice. They are born into it....and stay in it, for fear of their lives.
So tragic. - Reply to this comment
- I''d love to be able to have a sit down with one of these people. Just so I can say I had a conversation with one of the craziest people on earth.
- Reply to this comment
- Do you remember where he got the technology and the chemical precursors? It was a western country who sent a guy named Rumsfeld to visit Saddam as the president''''s personal representative.\
Posted by firststate
If someone gives me a gun, it doesn''t mean that I have to use it to kill 50,000 people. - Reply to this comment
- In this country (I''m in the United States of America) we have this thing called
The Constitution.
In it you will find "...The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is also the first section of the Bill of Rights. It is arguably the most important part of the U.S. Constitution, as it guarantees freedoms of religion, speech, writing and publishing, peaceful assembly, and the freedom to raise grievances with the Government. In addition, it requires that a wall of separation be maintained between church and state. It reads:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."
"
http://www.religioustolerance.org/amend_1.htm
I would submit that any person who tries to beat down another because of perceived religious differences, whether true or false, is far less American than Senator Barack Hussein Obama. - Reply to this comment
- hmmm... suicide bomber kills 26...
we''re so much safer now!! - Reply to this comment
- ask HUSSEIN to sing the call to prayer and then the american national anthem,,,
HUSSEIN SAYS MUSLIM CALL TO PRAYER IS ONE OF THE PRETTIEST SOUNDS ON EARTH AT SUNSET
%u201CI was a little Jakarta street kid,%u201D Obama said in a wide-ranging interview in his office (excerpts are on Nicholas D. Kristofs''s blog, http://www.nytimes.com/ontheground). He once got in trouble for making faces during Koran study classes in his elementary school, but a president is less likely to stereotype Muslims as fanatics %u2014 and more likely to be aware of their nationalism %u2014 if he once studied the Koran with them.
Mr. Obama recalled the opening lines of the Arabic call to prayer, reciting them with a first-rate accent. In a remark that seemed delightfully uncalculated (it%u2019ll give Alabama voters heart attacks), Mr. Obama described the call to prayer as %u201Cone of the prettiest sounds on Earth at sunset.%u201D
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/03/06/opinion/06kristof.html?_r=2&scp=5&sq=nicholas+kristof%20obama&st=nyt&oref=slogin&oref=slogin - Reply to this comment
Mike Huckabee on GOP "rock stars," 2012, health care reform and more.
