July 16, 2009 10:53 AM
- Text
Bomber Targets Iraqi Shiites At Mosque
(AP)
A suicide bomber detonated his explosives belt in a line of Shiite worshippers near the entrance of a mosque south of Baghdad during Friday prayer services, killing at least nine people, Iraqi officials said.
The attacker struck around noon while waiting in a line to be searched outside the mosque in Musayyib, a police officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.
The blast came a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact with the United States that will allow U.S. forces to stay in Iraq for three more years. Proponents of the deal - which still must be ratified by the three-member presidential council - argued the Americans are still needed because Iraqis aren't ready to take over security.
Anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called for peaceful protests over the agreement in a statement Friday. But in a significant omission, he did not repeat his threat to unleash militia fighters to attack U.S. forces if they don't leave immediately.
Al-Sadr also urged his followers to close his offices and affiliated institutions for three days "to show the tragedy that has befallen us," according to the statement that was read to reporters by his spokesman Sheik Salah al-Obeidi.
"We offer our condolences to the Iraqi people over this calamity that has fallen upon them with the signing of the agreement of humiliation and indignity," it said. "We will keep on calling for continuous peaceful public protests."
A cease-fire order by the Shiite cleric, who is believed to be in Iran, has been a key factor in the drop in violence over the past year.
Friday's suicide bomber struck a mosque run by al-Sadr loyalists in Musayyib, 40 miles south of Baghdad.
The police officer said the nine killed included a woman who was begging nearby. Dr. Saad al-Janabi confirmed the casualty toll, saying 15 people also were wounded.
Nobody claimed responsibility for the attack but suicide bombers are the signature attack of the group al Qaeda in Iraq. The U.S. military has warned that Sunni insurgents are trying to provoke revenge attacks by Shiite extremists.
Under the pact, U.S. forces will withdraw from Iraqi towns and cities by June 30 and the entire country by Jan. 1, 2012.
Iraq also will have strict oversight over the nearly 150,000 American troops now on the ground, representing a step toward full sovereignty for Iraq and a shift from the sense of frustration many Iraqis feel at the presence of U.S. troops on their soil for so many years.
The attacker struck around noon while waiting in a line to be searched outside the mosque in Musayyib, a police officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.
The blast came a day after Iraqi lawmakers approved a security pact with the United States that will allow U.S. forces to stay in Iraq for three more years. Proponents of the deal - which still must be ratified by the three-member presidential council - argued the Americans are still needed because Iraqis aren't ready to take over security.
Anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called for peaceful protests over the agreement in a statement Friday. But in a significant omission, he did not repeat his threat to unleash militia fighters to attack U.S. forces if they don't leave immediately.
Al-Sadr also urged his followers to close his offices and affiliated institutions for three days "to show the tragedy that has befallen us," according to the statement that was read to reporters by his spokesman Sheik Salah al-Obeidi.
"We offer our condolences to the Iraqi people over this calamity that has fallen upon them with the signing of the agreement of humiliation and indignity," it said. "We will keep on calling for continuous peaceful public protests."
A cease-fire order by the Shiite cleric, who is believed to be in Iran, has been a key factor in the drop in violence over the past year.
Friday's suicide bomber struck a mosque run by al-Sadr loyalists in Musayyib, 40 miles south of Baghdad.
The police officer said the nine killed included a woman who was begging nearby. Dr. Saad al-Janabi confirmed the casualty toll, saying 15 people also were wounded.
Nobody claimed responsibility for the attack but suicide bombers are the signature attack of the group al Qaeda in Iraq. The U.S. military has warned that Sunni insurgents are trying to provoke revenge attacks by Shiite extremists.
Under the pact, U.S. forces will withdraw from Iraqi towns and cities by June 30 and the entire country by Jan. 1, 2012.
Iraq also will have strict oversight over the nearly 150,000 American troops now on the ground, representing a step toward full sovereignty for Iraq and a shift from the sense of frustration many Iraqis feel at the presence of U.S. troops on their soil for so many years.
Popular Now in World
- Iran allegedly cuts off Internet access
- Pakistani fishermen reel in 40-foot whale shark
- Syria rebels bloodied, battered, but defiant
- Iran: We can attack U.S. interests "anywhere"
- "Voluptuous" Ukrainian nurse abandons Qaddafi
- Girl with Two Heads Born in Philippines
- Booze and bikinis in a new Egypt
- Cockpit error sent 737 into Pacific nose dive
- Israel To U.S.: Don't Delay Iraq Attack
- 23 women convicted of child pornography in Sweden
- Stephen Hawking: Heaven is "a fairy story"
- GlobalPost: Qaddafi apparently sodomized
- 130 Doctors Without Borders staff go missing
- Syria's Christians stand by Assad
- Greek Cruise Ship Sinks
- Costa Concordia wreck seen from space
- Iran helping al Qaeda? War "hysteria" builds
Latest CBS News Headlines
on Facebook
on CBS News
- Mexico army finds 73 Central American migrants
- Mexico army finds 73 Central American migrants
- Noriega leaves hospital in Panama, returns to jail
- Israeli reaches Chile plea deal to plant trees
on Facebook
- Adele sings a cappella for Anderson Cooper
- Beyonce and Jay-Z post first photos of Blue Ivy Carter
- Adele sings a cappella for Anderson Cooper
on CBS News
