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Subscribe to RSSBAGHDAD - Several car bombs exploded in Shi'ite Muslim neighborhoods across Iraq's capital Baghdad on Sunday morning, killing at least 26 people in blasts that tore into shops, restaurants and busy commercial streets.
No-one claimed responsibility for the attacks but Sunni Muslim insurgents have stepped up their operations since the beginning of the year in a bid to undermine the Shi'ite-led government and trigger deeper intercommunal fighting.
One blast tore off shop fronts in Qaiyara district while another left the remains of a car and its twisted engine littered across a high street in the busy, commercial Karrada district packed with restaurants and shops.
"I was buying an air conditioner and suddenly there was an explosion. I threw myself on the ground. Minutes later I saw many people around, some of them dead, others wounded," said Habibiya district salesman Jumaa Kareem, his jacket spattered with blood.
Sunday's blasts followed the assassination of a senior Iraqi army intelligence officer on Saturday, the latest in a wave of suicide bombings since January. No one claimed responsibility for that attack.
Many Iraq Sunnis feel they have been sidelined and unfairly targeted by security forces since the fall of Saddam Hussein and the rise of the country's Shi'ite majority through the ballot box.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's fragile power-sharing government, made up of Shi'ite, Sunni and ethnic Kurds, has been paralyzed by political infighting since American troops, who invaded the OPEC country to oust Saddam in 2003, withdrew more than a year ago.
Violence is still far from the mass sectarian bloodletting that killed tens of thousands in 2006-2007, though insurgents have carried out at least one big attack a month since the last U.S. troops left.
More than 10 suicide attackers have struck security forces, Shi'ite targets and a Sunni lawmaker since the start of January.
In the most recent attacks, a suicide bomber killed the head of the army's intelligence school on Saturday after storming his home in a northern town. Another suicide bomber killed 26 at a Shi'ite funeral at the start of the month.
There are fears the war in neighboring Syria - where Sunni rebels are fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Shi'ite Iran - could further destabilize Iraq's delicate sectarian and ethnic balance.
Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.
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Iraq is under foreign occupation and that is why nothing reported from there makes sense. The country was destroyed and oil taken, because Saddam did not want dollars anymore for his oil, but euro or gold . He invaded Kuwait because our ambassador April Gillespie told him that it was OK-Us would do nothing. Saddam was our patsie and we killed him. The former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark charged George Bush &Co with 19 counts of WAR CRIMES in the Gulf War. The Tribunal in Hague seems to have no clue, they just fry little fish.
Bush not only needs to face charges of war crimes in Iraq, but he needs to be investigated for his participation in 9/11 ( he orchestrated it with Cheney ) and terrorizing Americans. Will justice prevail ?
You can go back to sleep now. (wow the 'whacked out one' woke up.)
and there's the other one ^ the 'I've got the answer to everything' advertiser. Dang!
Joe, you are absolutely correct. Also, Obumma is a war criminal for helping to murder Moammar Gadhafi. When Gadhafi was alive, Libya was a peaceful and prosperous nation. Now there are just like Iraq.
Without Bush, the current conditions of Iraq would not have been possible.
Obama learnt well in Iraq how to run from a war started by Bush!
"Several car bombs exploded in Shi'ite Muslim neighborhoods across Iraq's capital Baghdad on Sunday morning, killing at least 26 people in blasts that tore into shops, restaurants and busy commercial streets."
This is a Zionist conspiracy!
Iran's Ayotallahs and gang must warn Israel.
I think you mistook Drano for your morning marijuana. Go back to sleep.
So Joey, is your tinfoil hat a tad too tight? Seems to be restricting the bloodflow to your tiny, little, reptilian brain.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that there is “a new strategic alignment in the Middle East,” separating “reformers” and “extremists”; she pointed to the Sunni states as centers of moderation, and said that Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah were “on the other side of that divide.” (Syria’s Sunni majority is dominated by the Alawi sect.) Iran and Syria, she said, “have made their choice and their choice is to destabilize.” -2007
Read more: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/03/05/070305fa_fact_hersh#ixzz2LAv4X8Tl
"The United States is selling $60 billion (£40 billion) worth of aircraft to
Saudi Arabia" - 2010
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/8000747/US-secures-record-60-billion-arms-sale-to-Saudi-Arabia.html
"Karachiites staged numerous anti-drones protests last year, but I don't recall
them holding any rallies to highlight a scourge (measles) that was twice as deadly for
their province's kids than drone strikes were for Pakistani
civilians." - 2012
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/taibblog/at-least-were-not-measles-rationalizing-drone-attacks-hits-new-low-20130214#ixzz2LB4jMQV0
Those brushing off any conscience by stating that his 'isn't news' or 'has been happening for centuries' do understand that the US actually exacerbates the hostility between these people. Directly arming or arming intermediaries that sell to homicidal/suicidal maniacs doesn't make you anything less than accomplices in mass murder. Think about that in church today.
Independant thinkerer, it's innocent civilians that get killed by terrorists. Get your head examined.
@ Texas
It never ceases to amaze me how unabashed some people are about getting into a public forum and pulling the curtain back on their ignorance. Here, we can begin with the lead comment.
And to those of you who want to lay Iraq's terrorism on America's doorstep -- WRONG! Sunnis and Shiites have been killing each other for centuries. The vacuum we created in our departure simply allowed these people to get back to life as usual.
Then, we have those who pile on the pedestrian criticisms of our presidents. Well, I didn't agree with Iraq II and I imagine Bush and Co. could face war crimes, but you people go blind when you speak of Arab leaders like Hussein and Qadafi as an American tool and the leader of a peace-loving country respectively.
It often pains me to read some of the equine feccal matter put on on such articles, many comments go way off the mark. Look at this article; Muslims killing Muslims, a centuries old tradition dating back to before the founding of America. This is neither our fault nor our responsibility, this killing has its roots in the inbred hatred these two factions of Islam have for one another in Iraq. Will you people please comment on that and quit letting these hate mongers off the hook?
Muslims, apparently love killing other Muslims. Unless, they just love killing others who are nearby that aren't exactly like themselves.
There's something fundamentally wrong with these folks.
You beat me to it. I guess when there is only one of them left - he'll pull the chord on him/herself. They will NEVER learn this is not the answer. I agree - there is just something fundamentally wrong with a people that consider the only answer is to kill people by blowing up something. But look how they treat their OWN women - a second class citizen. (Mommy issues I think.) A 'just gone crazy' people. If I were looking for a religion to change to - muslim would NOT be it. Just too many things WRONG with those people. Just dang crazy!!!!
Crazy person comments in 5..4..3..2..
I agree.
Still I can't get into my head how Bush, Sr and Jr decided Saddam as winner against Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other nations!
Saddam was doing the right job of killing.
But Bushes got us in between and got beaten up from all sides including economic one.
"Sunni Muslim insurgents have stepped up their operations since the beginning of the year in a bid to undermine the Shi'ite-led government and trigger deeper intercommunal fighting."
At least, let us learn some lessons: 1. Keep away from them in Syria, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and other trouble spots.
2. Don't go in between their jobs of cleaning Islam by killing each other.
@Texas grace,
Yes, look at how they treat their women, and then look at what the GOP is trying to do to women here. Quite a few par-ells there. So some people are correct when they say the Gop is the American Taliban. Of course their control freaked, low informed base won't agree with that, but it's the truth.
@ SallyAnn -
What the heck? Calling names does not get your point across - whatever it may be. Dang girl - I agree with Independent - there is no war against women here. Wouldn't last 5 minutes. You and I both know that. (Jeez - wake up first.)
What is it that the republicans are trying to do against women. All I have seem coming from the left are outright lies and misdirection so far and your post is one of the most vague I have seen.
SallyAnn, you need to stop drinking the Obama kool-aid. Obama wants you to believe that the GOP is mistreating women.
Obama is on another vacation. Is he spending quality time with his wife and daughters? No he is not. In my opinion it's wrong. I assume the Presidency is a time consuming job. He should spend every possible free time with his family.
His wife and daughters are vacationing in Colorado. More wasteful spending of taxpayers money. Of course the media will not talk about this.
lack of support in the violence against women act renewal. attempt to control how a woman addresses HER body, general disdain against health insurance... YOU MEAN THOSE KINDS OF ISSUES??
SallyAnn: Put some cream in your coffee, dilute it with something. I believe it was Plato who said: "There are no good analogies." Your making the GOP analogous with the Taliban reaffirms a centuries-old statement.
So there is no GOP war against women? LMAO over that. Check what the red controlled states have done, check out the laws they have passed lately.
Then come back here and repeat the crap you said before. You won't if you are a honest person. You will if you are one of the low informed base people.
And I don't drink kool-aid, neither the R's nor the D's. Silly twat for saying that crap. And why Jo Ann should he not be able to have some selftime to enjoy himself? And congress is on vacation, wasting our money, but you failed to complain about that. Hate Obama that much girl? seems like it.
@stick a fork in it, YEP, those issues, plus more. But I do realize the low informed, brainwashed GOP base does not understand a lot of things. In FACT, the GOP lost the oval office mainly because most of the WOMEN would NOT VOTE FOR THE GOP.
So keep being in denial you low informed base members of the GOP. But denying everything still doesn't change the FACT, you LOST again to that 'uppity' POTUS. Hopefully you can get over it soon.
I can see there is no talking in a logical, adult manner with a POd women's liber.
A GOP war against women - lolx10. True, the GOP has lost touch with the reality of present day America, and not just where women are concerned. They are in a time warp on issues that affect us all, regardless of gender, and age too, for that matter.
So quit being so damn bitter and narrow-minded, everything is not just about women, unless you fit into a category of women no self-respecting man or level-headed woman wants to have anything to do with.
Sallyann - Why don't you tell me what the red states have done to get you so angry. Are you angry because they didn't vote for Obama?
They have been killing each other for hudreds of years. Old habits are hard to change. This is not news.
That's really the heart of it right there. They have no tradition of peace, just an Europe didn't a hundred years ago. It's not religion so much as a culture problem. They think violence is the way to promote change, not the ballot box or negotiation. Compromise represents failure to them (as it does to some political types here at home).
1391 years more or less. Imagine Christians killing each other over whether Jesus went to Hell before ascending.
of course, lending credence to the adage that"Religion is the opium of the masses..." (mental placebo for those too poor to afford the REAL THING...)
Before the US or any civilized country goes on any of these stupid ventures into any country of Islam they need to do a mental status exam on it's people and culture. This is the culture of death and blood lust. An antique and not fully evolved culture still trying to understand the 4th centuries ways. The Sunni, the Shia, the Alawite and other tribes all hate each other and will kill as this all goes down to who has the better Muhammad. There is no proper Muhammad, it is all a delusion and hallucination of the mind as is Christianity. If you have a religion that gives you permission that allows you to kill someone who believes differently then you are worshiping a false God or an idol. People are inherently stupid.
Religion is the opium of the masses.
Many followers of Islam have become high dosage heroin addicts!
"Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's fragile power-sharing government, made up of Shi'ite, Sunni and ethnic Kurds, has been paralyzed by political infighting since American troops, who invaded the OPEC country to oust Saddam in 2003, withdrew more than a year ago."
At least these Islamic heroin addicts have not turned YET Iraq to bloody civil war and killing fields.
Of course, these are going to follow with more and more drug dosage!
William - actually 7th century, but otherwise correct IMHO.
Now when you think about it, there is very little difference between islam infighting and christian infighting except that the christians don't seem to have a blood vengeance against each other - they just smile, walk away, point and laugh...
Funny thing - islam was taken DIRECTLY from judaism and christianity with a few "minor" changes (Ishmael instead of Isaac - that's the big one - they revere Abraham as the founder, the patriarch); This jesus character is a PROPHET in islam (just not THE prophet); then there is the schism between the "open the egg from the big end" versus "open the egg from the small end" (sunni-shia - that's not derived from any relationship with either of the 2 "parent religions" - it's merely the result of a power struggle as to WHO would be the succeeding "prophet" after muhammud bit the dust - apparently leaving no clear instructions as to succession)
Yeah - I agree about Religion being the opium of the masses. I suppose that everyone "needs" a "get outa death free" card like is promised by christianity and islam (of course, Buddhists maybe Hindus, too, just want to DIE and STAY DEAD instead of being trapped in the eternal cycle of repeating "living" until they get "enlightened" enough to achieve "NIRVANA" - but, whatever. All life is suffering; suffering has a cause; correct the cause of the suffering and achieve enlightement; END CYCLE)
Some of us revel in life - some of us revel in death. I'll take the former.
You know....that could be a win-win for everybody. Those who love death should have it, and those who love life should have that!
then there is the Cult of Kali where THEY delight in YOUR death...
Thanks GW Bush, Cheney and Rumsfield for the gift that keeps on taking. You bootlickers were so concerned about destabilizing Israel's neighbors you cost hundreds of thousands of lives and bankrupted many of your own countrymen. You bums belong in prison.
.
give it a rest dave - as much as I despise shrub and his pack of running dogs, it's HISTORY. There is NOTHING we can do about it at this point... NOTHING AT ALL
Let's see. Baghdad. Bombs. Dead. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............Wake me up when there is some actual news.
Shiites of Iraq, Iran, Hezbollah, and other places, should go to the rescue of Assad.
Otherwise, they will be cowards.
does your elevator get to the top floor in your brain? let 'em fight it out - let 'em kill each other. It's THEIR "war".
put a fork in it: Your "fork" always goes to wrong places!
May be: you have the habit of putting "fork" first and then thinking!
I want the Shiites vs Sunni battles in Syria to go for a long time.
As Shiites hardly form 20 percent, I support Shiites for their battles to be a bit worth while.
So what else is new? All those American lives going to waste to try and help a country who murder their own incl women and children.
OK government idiots you can send our military into Libya and waste more money and lives.
we DIDN'T - what's your problem?
Well Iraq isn't the only place where the camel jockeys are killing other camel jockeys. And the problem is they think if they kill themselves they will go to heaven and receive their 72 grains of white rice. Yes, rice is what the Koran says, however their drunk queer mullahs tell them it's virgins they will get.
Stupid idiots don't realize that there isn't that many virgins in the world, let alone their heaven. Plus they won't be going to heaven as those queer mullahs tell them, as the Koran and the bible says different. But as most of the camel jockeys can neither read nor write, how can they argue against the queer mullahs?
And yes, it's easy to blame GW Bush for this, but it actually started with Ronald Hussein Reagan. He made a deal with the Iranians to not free our hostages until after the election against Carter. That is common knowledge to anyone who reads history. And every President after, except Obama, has help feed the frenzy of the Muslims.
Who supplied bin Laden with missiles to use against the Russian helicopters? Non other than Ronald Hussein Reagan, that's who. And then who screw bin Laden later on, well non other than Ronald Hussein Reagan, with GHW Bush's help. Then Clinton had a chance to take bin Laden out, and didn't do it.
Then the Jr. part of the Bush crime cartel had a chance to take bin Laden out, even proclaimed him as enemy #1 and offered a huge bounty on him. And then later, GW Bush said bin Laden didn't matter anymore. And disbanded the group of military/intel agents looking for him.
Then that uppity upstart gets elected, reforms the group that GW Bush disbanded, and they found bin Laden, and Obama gave the order to team 6 to take him out. And they did. And then, after making GW Bush look like an amateur, the low informed GOP base tried to take credit away from Obama. Silly little fools, aren't they?
Yes, there is plenty of blame to go around, but looking at past history and then at today, Obama has done a better job with the Muslim problem than anyone else from Ronald Hussien Reagan thru GW Bush. But to hear the GOP side of the matter, it's all Obama's fault.
If Obama walked on water, the GOP low informed base would complain he couldn't swim. Just no pleasing those LIARS AND LOSERS. They LIED when they said Obama was a one term POTUS, and they LOST two elections against that 'uppity' POTUS. So don't complain when people call you liars and losers.
"Get over it, it's corrupted politics at it's best, it is now Obama's turn" .... to screw up the country.
(you didn't finish your sentence)
Interesting ?
sure he finished it - fuc king obstinate GOP idiots unwilling to do ANYTHING productive. What's their purpose lately? Bring the entire gummint to a HALT
"WAHHH WAHHH - since I can't have my way we won't cooperate with Obama on ANYTHING - no matter WHO gets hurt."
Remember 2014 is coming and a new broom sweeps clean - most of congress (Rethugs and many Dems, too) need to be shown the DOOR and replaced with someone who considers the COUNTRY over PARTY (I may be a liberal, but IF we don't get spending under control, I'm going to have to go live in some other country because I just can't AFFORD the US any longer). Of course, that 6 TRILLION pounded down sandy ratholes by da SHRUB started it all off - but that's water under the bridge and WE HAVE TO FIX THE PROBLEM - IT WON'T BE CHEAP, BUT IT IS REQUIRED
If there was a "moderate muslim" demographic, how hard would we have to try to "win them over" after a steady diet of this for decades? Really? They'd rather die wholesale than control the so called "radicals" among them?
The "moderate muslim" is a total myth. Any intelligence they may have had a thousand years ago has long since died from a thousand years of cousin-marrying. These people are morons.
Key here is were out of that hell hole. So many blowing themselves that the Leaders have asked their Allah if he is out of virgins. They are importing them from another galaxy. OK fire sale blow the hell out of each other
Think Menendez will step down next week!
It'seassuring to know that the illegal and criminal invasion of Irak brought democracy and prosperity to that country, as promised by war criminals Bush/Cheney.
And the war's cost was financed entirely by Irak's oil, as promised by the same duo, and not taxpayer money was used to the tune of billions.
And now we have a peaceful and democratic Irak. What more can we ask?
money to pay for it?
Iraq is an awful place, they have awful people. Do not interfere with them killing each other, this helps the world. The less Muslims in the world, the better the World.
Like everyone was saying years ago, 'get the heck out of Iraq, they will never change'.
Well here we are years later, after tens of thousands killed, and those idiots are still at it. It's their religion and lack of education that will cause this type of thing to continue for infinity. They are a worthless bunch of idiots who will not stop killing themselves until no one is left. What a shame!
If you think it applies to IRAQ, it applies DOUBLY to AFGHANISTAN - there has NEVER been a successful invasion of AFGHANISTAN in RECORDED HISTORY. Just get out and put the taliban on notice that we will continue flying drones and IF they get out of hand they will never see the hellfire missile coming down their throats.
So muslims have problems with those "wrong style" of muslims, as well as those "not quite muslim enough". What if each muslim "honored" one other muslim per day? Do the math. Much of the worlds troubles would vanish within a month.
fat chance of that - they are as ingrained in their philosophy as REB'S and YANKEES - and we KNOW how ingrained that is...
Most (all?) sunnis would rather DIE than respect a shia - and vice-verso.
@stevejc42
Isn't that the same thing the GOP was saying about other GOPer's? They weren't conservative enough so they were RINO's. So if a 'muslim isn't muslim enough', and a GOP isn't GOP enough, then they are like the Taliaban in almost all of their ways. Glad you point that out to the low informed base of theirs.
Baby Bush sure was right. These people crave democracy. Glad we went. sigh...
6 TRILLION $$$ pounded down a sandy RATHOLE...
Why did the Democrats vote for this? Or yeah they voted for it before they were against or something like that. fools.
Surprise, surprise. Appears as though the great free society of rag heads is not working out too well. Incredibly predictable except for the "visionary" George Bush. A truly dispicable loss of American lives and dollars for absolutely nothing of long term significance.
The Iraq war was concocted by Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Pearle, Douglas Feith of the PNAC which is a Neocon think tank that formulates policy that they see as beneficial to Israel. Paul, Douglas, and Richard are all Jews with allegiance to Israel. They knew that invading Iraq would create more terrorism and the collateral damage would cause many people to be killed across the globe. As a result of our invasion of Iraq over 300 people were killed in a Madrid train station, 30 people were killed in a London bus bombing, 14 soldiers were shot dead at Fort Hood Texas. This is exactly what they wanted to go along with the civil war they caused in Iraq. They hoped that by invading Iraq that they could also draw Iran into war. The damage caused by the criminal behavior of our former leaders should never be minimized but remembered as the worst war crime committed so far in this century.
Don't forget the Democrats who voted in favor of the war. They also said there were WMD in Iraq, better check your history.
26 more huh. Well, add them to the open tab...