Thaindian News

By Ranjan Bhaduri
Baghdad, July 10, (THAINDIAN NEWS) 12 people were killed in Baghdad in a target attack by the militants on Thursday. The Iraqi officials informed the media that the militants had targeted the pilgrimage on Thursday which was also the last day of the Shia Holiday. The people were heading back home from a Northern Baghdad mosque when the bombers attacked.

Although there are over thousands of Shia Muslims who had flocked together in the mosque, the Sunni insurgents were the primary target of the militants. The attacks were all pre-planned and is said to be a reaction by the anti-government fighters who have resolved to destabilize the political framework of the nation as the American troops head back home. As a matter of fact, Iraq has been without a government since the elections of March which had no declared winner. Edmund Ghareeb who happens to be the professor of Middle East studies in Washington said that these attacks are aimed to weaken the framework of the nation and create conflict and tension.

Before Thursday, northern Baghdad witnessed one more attack in the Adhamiya district where the Sunni Muslims resides in majority. Reportedly, the militants have been carrying on their attacks on Sunni insurgents who had taken part in the Musa Kadhim pilgrimage. The total number of people injured since Tuesday is close to 300. The militants had employed suicide bombers who killed 32 people as people were trying to cross a bridge which leads to the shrine of Musa Kadhim. Another 90 were injured in the blast. The blast took place in the same spots where in 2005 more than 900 were killed in a stampede after people rushed to shelter in fear of a suicide bomb attack.