The death toll from an attack on a Shiite shrine north of Baghdad has risen to 37, with 62 people wounded, Iraqi officials said
Baghdad: The death toll from an attack on a Shiite shrine north of Baghdad has risen to 37, with 62 people wounded, Iraqi officials said. The assault on the revered shrine comes less than a week after a bombing in central Baghdad claimed by ISIS killed at least 186 people, fuelling anger at the Iraqi government’s security failings.
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Iraqi policemen inspect Sayyid Mohammed shrine in Baghdad after the attack. Pic/AFP
The attack began with a volley of mortar fire on Sayyid Mohammed shrine and a nearby market in Balad, late Thursday night. A suicide bomber first targeted policemen guarding the shrine’s entrance, allowing a second bomber to push into the courtyard with nine gunmen, who targeted security forces and civilians gathered inside to celebrate Eid. A third bomber was killed before he detonated his explosives, police said. Hospital officials confirmed the death toll.