13 die in rare Baghdad suicide attack

BAGHDAD: A rare twin suicide bombing killed at least 13 people on a bustling commercial street in the heart of Baghdad on Thursday, the military said, rupturing months of relative calm.

Iraq’s joint operations command said another 19 people were also wounded, calling it a “preliminary toll”.

Medical sources told AFP they feared the death toll could be twice as high as officially announced. The health ministry said it had mobilised medics across the capital to respond to the deadly attack.

Military spokesman Yahya Rasool said two suicide bombers detonated their explosives as they were being pursued by security forces. An AFP reporter at the scene said the bombers had struck a huge open-air market for second-hand clothes in Tayaran Square. It had been teeming with people following nearly a year of restrictions imposed in a bid to halt the spread of Covid-19.

Security forces cordoned off the area and paramedics were working to help the casualties.

After years of deadly sectarian violence, suicide bombings have become relatively rare in the capital. The last such attack took place in June 2019 and left several people dead.

Thursday’s twin attack was not immediately claimed but suicide bombings have been used by ultra-conservative Islamist groups, most recently the Islamic State organisation.