The bloodshed was a stark reminder of the political tensions threatening to provoke a new round of sectarian violence that once pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war. u00a0The pilgrims were headed to the northern Baghdad neighborhood of Kazimiyah to mark the anniversary of the death of a revered Shiite saint who is interred there.

Wreck: Children play around the bombed remains of vehicules in Khaldiya, after a wave of coordinated attacks hit Iraq yesterday. Pic/AFP