Monday, July 16, 2007

Iraq oil city blasts kill dozens

BBC

Dozens of people have been killed and wounded in two bomb attacks in the northern Iraqi oil city of Kirkuk.

Reports from the area say the death toll from the vehicle bombings is at least 85, with 180 injured, and police say casualties are expected to rise.

The office of a Kurdish political party - the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) - and a crowded market were targeted by the bombers.

The status of Kirkuk is disputed by Arab Iraqis, Kurds and Turkmen.

Scene of carnage

Witnesses to the attack on the PUK office said the massive explosion there left a crater several metres deep.

More than 20 cars were destroyed, two buildings collapsed completely and a number of shops were also damaged. Dozens of bodies were strewn across the street.

The PUK is the party led by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.

In the second attack, a bomber struck the bus station at the nearby market.

Meanwhile in the capital, Baghdad, a series of attacks on Monday morning killed at least nine people.

In the deadliest of the attacks, a roadside bomb hit an Iraqi army patrol on the city's north-eastern outskirts, killing five soldiers and wounding nine others.

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