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Bomb strikes Shia pilgrims, again

BAGHDAD: A car bomb exploded on Saturday as Shia pilgrims were boarding buses in Baghdad, killing at least six people, said officials, in a third straight day of attacks on pilgrims going to Karbala.

Despite the violence, thousands of worshippers streamed toward the twin golden domed mosques of Karbala, a Shia religious centre south of Baghdad.

The explosives-laden car blew up near buses picking up pilgrims in Baghdad’s mainly Shia district of Shaab. It was the latest in a series of bombings targeting Shias heading for the Karbala festivities, which culminate on Sunday. The deadliest attack came on Thursday when a female suicide bomber killed at least 18 pilgrims resting on the roadside. On Friday, a van packed with explosives blew up at a bus station in Balad, north of Baghdad. The Balad hospital director, Qassim Hatam al-Qaisi, said nine people were killed and 40 were wounded.

The attacks have heightened concern that extremists are seeking to reignite the firestorm of sectarian massacres. U.S.-backed Iraqi troops have stepped up security measures for the pilgrimage, but travellers remain vulnerable on the road.

Iraqi soldiers, meanwhile, arrested the head of a U.S.-funded Sunni group who was accused of “supporting terrorism” in a series of raids in the western Baghdad district of Jihad. An Iraqi officer identified the suspect as Tahir Abdullah al-Hamdani, the head of the Awakening Council in Jihad. The U.S. confirmed that a leader of the group was arrested but declined to identify him or give more details.

U.S. commanders have said the Sunni revolt against Al-Qaeda in Iraq was a key factor in a sharp decline in violence over the past year, but the movement has been troubled by friendly fire incidents and concerns about infiltration. In Karbala, security forces were taking no chances amid warnings that militants are increasingly using women to stage attacks — women can more easily hide explosives under their abayas and men are reluctant to search them. Posters of religious leaders were confiscated for fear they might provoke attacks by followers of rival clerics, and cell phones were banned because they could be used to trigger bombs.

Police cars and ambulances roamed the streets, while officials set up tents around the city to provide food, water and emergency medical care. — AP

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