BAGHDAD: A bomb tore through a minibus during morning rush hour yesterday in a mainly Shiite area in Baghdad, killing at least nine people and wounding 24, officials said.
The blast was a grim reminder of the major challenge facing Iraqi forces three weeks ahead of the June 30 deadline for US troops to withdraw from urban areas.
The bomb was attached to the minibus in the southern area of Abu Dshir, a Shiite enclave in the mainly Sunni neighborhood of Dora, police said.
“A ball of fire rose into the sky. We saw a minibus thrown about five meters into the air, then come down in flames,” said Omar Abdul-Ghafar, a student who was waiting with his friend for another bus.
The explosion left a crater at the entrance of the bus station where commuters were gathered to catch rides to different parts of the city.
An Associated Press photographer saw the charred hulk of the minibus and three other burned-out cars. Security forces sealed off the area while ambulances rushed the wounded to the hospital.
Police and hospital officials gave the death toll and said 24 people also were wounded. An Interior Ministry official said all those killed had been passengers on the bus while the wounded were bystanders waiting nearby.
Both districts have faced brutal sectarian bloodshed in past years but have seen a sharp decline in violence following a Sunni revolt against insurgent groups such as Al-Qaeda in Iraq and a Shiite militia cease-fire.
US-Iraqi forces also increased their presence and cordoned areas off with concrete walls and checkpoints in the citywide push to quell the violence that pushed the country to the brink of civil war.
