A rare twin suicide attack hit a commercial street in central Baghdad on Thursday morning, state television reported, adding that there were “dead and wounded” without giving any figures.
Brigadier General Hazem al-Azzawi, the director of Baghdad Operations Command, told the Iraq News Agency (INA) that a “double explosion” hit a crowded market in the Bab al-Sharji area near Tayaran Square.
The Operations Command said two suicide bombers detonated their explosives at an outdoor market for second-hand clothing.
According to three police officials, seven people have been killed in the attack so far and more than 25 others wounded.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
They also said the death toll from the attack could rise as some wounded people were in a critical condition.
After years of deadly sectarian violence following the 2003 US invasion, suicide bombings have become relatively rare in the capital. The last such attack took place in June 2019 and left several people dead.
Militias have routinely targeted the US presence with rocket and mortar attacks, especially the US embassy in the heavily fortified Green Zone. The pace of the attacks has decreased since an informal truce was declared by Iran-backed armed groups in October.
No group claimed the attack immediately, but suicide attacks have mostly been used by ISIL (ISIS).
Iraq declared ISIL defeated at the end of 2017 after a fierce three-year campaign. But the group’s sleeper cells have continued to operate in desert and mountain areas, typically targeting security forces or state infrastructure with low-casualty attacks.
SOURCE : AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES
