- 07 Mar 2007, 21:59
#9476
BAGHDAD — Bombings and shootings that killed more than 110 Shiite Muslim pilgrims observing a religious ritual Tuesday appear to be part of a Sunni insurgent strategy to rekindle sectarian warfare to levels that could derail the latest U.S.-led effort to stabilize Iraq.
U.S. military planners have been warning of spectacular attacks as Sunnis try to goad Shiite militias back into battle and destabilize Iraq's Shiite-led government. Shiite militants have reined in their campaign of execution-style revenge killings since a joint U.S.-Iraqi security crackdown began in Baghdad last month.
A senior Pentagon official said insurgent groups might attempt attacks as devastating as last year's bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra. The attack on the revered Shiite shrine has been blamed for setting off Iraq's civil war.
"They are trying to provoke the Shia," said the Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity when discussing internal planning. "My guess is they are going to try a repeat of Samarra. They may go back to Samarra and say, 'We didn't really level the place.' Imagine that, perception-wise — to go back to Samarra and finish the job."
The attacks on Shiite civilians came on a day when the U.S. announced the deaths of nine American troops Monday in roadside bomb attacks on their convoys in northern Iraq.
Six soldiers were killed in one bombing and three in another. It was the deadliest day for U.S. troops in Iraq in nearly a month, the military said.
The soldiers were based in Tikrit, the birthplace of Saddam Hussein, north of Baghdad. The area is a Sunni insurgent stronghold. Further details were not available.
The U.S. military death toll stands at 3,185, according to icasualties.org, which tracks war-related deaths in Iraq.
More than 110 Shiites were reported killed in attacks in Hillah, Baghdad and Mosul.
Some were on their way to Karbala to participate in an annual celebration related to Ashura, one of the most important holidays on the Shiite calendar.
Shiite religious celebrations were largely suppressed under Hussein. Since his fall in 2003, public celebrations have become an important symbol of Shiite pride, but they also have become Sunni targets.
In the worst incident Tuesday, two suicide bombers walking among pilgrims in Hillah, south of Baghdad, detonated their explosive belts within two minutes of each other, killing at least 77 and injuring 127, local police said.
Witnesses said the first bomber walked near a large group of pilgrims and chanted prayers in an apparent effort to blend in with the crowd before detonating his bomb. The second blew himself up about 50 yards away.
for more...
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld ... ines-world
U.S. military planners have been warning of spectacular attacks as Sunnis try to goad Shiite militias back into battle and destabilize Iraq's Shiite-led government. Shiite militants have reined in their campaign of execution-style revenge killings since a joint U.S.-Iraqi security crackdown began in Baghdad last month.
A senior Pentagon official said insurgent groups might attempt attacks as devastating as last year's bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra. The attack on the revered Shiite shrine has been blamed for setting off Iraq's civil war.
"They are trying to provoke the Shia," said the Pentagon official, who spoke on condition of anonymity when discussing internal planning. "My guess is they are going to try a repeat of Samarra. They may go back to Samarra and say, 'We didn't really level the place.' Imagine that, perception-wise — to go back to Samarra and finish the job."
The attacks on Shiite civilians came on a day when the U.S. announced the deaths of nine American troops Monday in roadside bomb attacks on their convoys in northern Iraq.
Six soldiers were killed in one bombing and three in another. It was the deadliest day for U.S. troops in Iraq in nearly a month, the military said.
The soldiers were based in Tikrit, the birthplace of Saddam Hussein, north of Baghdad. The area is a Sunni insurgent stronghold. Further details were not available.
The U.S. military death toll stands at 3,185, according to icasualties.org, which tracks war-related deaths in Iraq.
More than 110 Shiites were reported killed in attacks in Hillah, Baghdad and Mosul.
Some were on their way to Karbala to participate in an annual celebration related to Ashura, one of the most important holidays on the Shiite calendar.
Shiite religious celebrations were largely suppressed under Hussein. Since his fall in 2003, public celebrations have become an important symbol of Shiite pride, but they also have become Sunni targets.
In the worst incident Tuesday, two suicide bombers walking among pilgrims in Hillah, south of Baghdad, detonated their explosive belts within two minutes of each other, killing at least 77 and injuring 127, local police said.
Witnesses said the first bomber walked near a large group of pilgrims and chanted prayers in an apparent effort to blend in with the crowd before detonating his bomb. The second blew himself up about 50 yards away.
for more...
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld ... ines-world
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- By Riyaz