18/02/2005

Several killed as Shia mosques bombed in Baghdad

Several people have been killed in attacks on two Shia mosques in Baghdad.

At least seventeen people were killed in the first attack, at a mosque in Doura, which was caused by a suicide bomber.

Eyewitnesses reported that the bomber walked amongst the worshippers, who had gathered in the mosque for morning prayers, before detonating an explosives belt, around 1pm local time (10am GMT).

Another person was killed in a second bomb blast, at a mosque in western Baghdad, which occurred shortly after the Doura blast. Four people were also reported as injured in the explosion.

The two explosions occurred during the Shia Muslims Ashura festival, a commemoration of the martyrdom of the Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Imam Hussein, in 680 AD. More than 170 people were killed in bomb attacks in both Baghdad and Kerbala during the ceremony last year. Iraqi security forces have attempted to increase patrols during this year's festival, which finishes tomorrow.

(KMcA/SP)

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