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Iraqi workers die in bomb attack | Iraqi workers die in bomb attack |
(30 minutes later) | |
At least 17 people died after a suicide bomber attacked a group of labourers in the mainly Shia, Iraqi town of Hilla, local police officials have said. | At least 17 people died after a suicide bomber attacked a group of labourers in the mainly Shia, Iraqi town of Hilla, local police officials have said. |
At least 43 people were also injured in the incident, according to police. | |
Witnesses said the attack occurred when the bomber rammed a car laden with explosives into a crowd of labourers queuing for work in a yard. | Witnesses said the attack occurred when the bomber rammed a car laden with explosives into a crowd of labourers queuing for work in a yard. |
The attack on the town, 100km (65 miles) south of Baghdad, is the latest incident in the ongoing unrest in Iraq. | The attack on the town, 100km (65 miles) south of Baghdad, is the latest incident in the ongoing unrest in Iraq. |
The bomb attack took place in the Bab al-Hussein area in central Hilla at about 0700 (0400GMT), police told AFP news agency. | |
People were racing everywhere looking for their missing sons, brothers, friends Mohammed Abbas Kadhim | |
"The sudden explosion shook the whole area and shattered the windows of a store I was standing outside of nearby," said Muhsin Hadi Alwan, 33, one of the wounded labourers. | |
"The ground was covered with the remains of people and blood, and survivors ran in all directions. How will I feed the six members of my family when I return home without work and without money?" he told AP news agency. | |
Another witness, Mohammed Abbas Kadhim, 30, said: "I was thrown a few metres by the blast and I couldn't see or hear for a few minutes as I was laying on the ground. | |
"People were racing everywhere looking for their missing sons, brothers, friends - all of them shouting: 'God is great'," he said. | |
Continued bloodshed | |
The Iraqi government in Baghdad now estimates that 150,000 Iraqis have been killed since the US-led invasion in 2003. | The Iraqi government in Baghdad now estimates that 150,000 Iraqis have been killed since the US-led invasion in 2003. |
This year the death toll has been about 100 every day, adding up to some 3,000 a month. | This year the death toll has been about 100 every day, adding up to some 3,000 a month. |
Last month a bomb blast in a police station in Hilla killed the commander of an Iraqi special police force unit. | Last month a bomb blast in a police station in Hilla killed the commander of an Iraqi special police force unit. |
It is about three months since the last major attack in Hilla, when a bomb was detonated at an army recruitment centre, killing a dozen would-be recruits and injuring many more. | It is about three months since the last major attack in Hilla, when a bomb was detonated at an army recruitment centre, killing a dozen would-be recruits and injuring many more. |
In February 2005 Hilla was the site of one of the worst bomb attacks since the US-led invasion in 2003 when a suicide car bomber killed 125 national guard and police recruits. | In February 2005 Hilla was the site of one of the worst bomb attacks since the US-led invasion in 2003 when a suicide car bomber killed 125 national guard and police recruits. |