BAGHDAD: A truck bomb exploded near a Shiite mosque in northern Iraq following prayers yesterday, killing at least 67 people and wounding nearly 200, making it the deadliest blast in nearly two months.
The explosion came hours after Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki called the withdrawal of US troops from cities by the end of this month a “great victory” and promised it would go ahead as scheduled. Officials have warned that insurgents are likely to stage more attacks in the wake of the withdrawal to try to undermine confidence in the government’s ability to protect its people.
Worshippers were leaving the mosque in Taza, 16 km south of Kirkuk, following noon prayers when the truck exploded, according to police Brig. Gen. Sarhat Qader. He said the mosque and at least eight nearby houses were demolished. Rescue teams searched for hours to find people buried under the rubble.
Women begged police to let them near the site so they could search for loved ones while ambulances rushed victims to the overwhelmed hospital in Kirkuk.
Yellman Zain Al-Abideen, who was wounded by shrapnel in his hand and face, cried for his missing son. “He was only 10 feet away from me when we were leaving the mosque. I don’t know what happened to him,” the 43-year-old said, blaming local authorities for not providing sufficient security. “There should have been guards around the mosque, we are living in an area surrounded by enemies.”
Tensions have risen in the oil-rich area of Kirkuk as Kurds seek to incorporate it into their semiautonomous region despite opposition from Arabs, Turkomen and other rival ethnic groups. That has raised concerns about an outbreak of ethnic violence in northern Iraq even as attacks elsewhere decline. Taza is mostly Turkomen.
A US-Iraqi security pact requires the Americans to pull back combat troops from cities by the end of this month as a first step toward a full withdrawal by 2012. The deal includes a provision for the Iraqi government to ask for US help if violence surges.
Al-Maliki insisted earlier that the withdrawal would take place on schedule. He acknowledged that more attacks were likely but said Iraqi security forces were prepared.
Any extension would show a lack of confidence and would be a “historic setback,” he said during a speech to members of the Turkomen ethnic minority. “We will not retreat no matter what happens and, God willing, nothing will happen because of the capabilities that our security forces have,” he said.
