Eid Attacks in Iraq Target Children, Pilgrims: 53 Killed, 141 Wounded

Saturday's Toll: 46 Killed, 123 Wounded

by , October 27, 2012

Insurgents were saving their worst for the second day of the Eid al-Adha holiday. At least 46 people were killed and 123 more were wounded across central and northern Iraq. Several of the victims may have been Iranian pilgrims traveling to a Shi’ite shrine in Baghdad. Eid al-Adha commemorates a Biblical event honored by Muslims, Christians and Jews.

Late in the day, a car bomb at a Sadr City market left 12 dead and 27 wounded. Ten more were killed and 31 were wounded when a second bomb exploded at a bus station.

In Baghdad, a bombing at a Bawiya playground and market left eight dead and 24 wounded; a number of children were among those killed or wounded. One person was killed and five more were wounded in a separate bombing.

Six people were killed, in Taji, and as many as 11 more were wounded when a sticky bomb placed on a minibus taking Iranian pilgrims to shrine exploded; it is unclear if all the victims were Iranian or not, but most likely they were.

Shabak families were targeted in Mosul. A boy and his parents were killed in one home invasion, while a mother and daughter were killed at a separate home. At least four people were wounded in those shootings. Six Shabaks were wounded during a blast at a third home. The Shabaks are part of the Turkmen minority.

In Tuz Khormato, two people were killed and 10 people were wounded during a blast in a Turkmen neighborhood.

In Muqdadiya, at least two people were killed and another was wounded. A car bomb in the al-Askari neighborhood wounded four civilians.

Read more by Margaret Griffis