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| Suicide blasts hit Iraqi pilgrims | Suicide blasts hit Iraqi pilgrims |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Twenty-five people have been killed and 52 wounded in suicide attacks against pilgrims in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, police say. | |
| The attacks, carried out by women, targeted Shia Muslims heading for the Kadhimiya shrine in the north of the city for annual ceremonies. | The attacks, carried out by women, targeted Shia Muslims heading for the Kadhimiya shrine in the north of the city for annual ceremonies. |
| The bombers struck as pilgrim convoys passed through the central Karrada district. | The bombers struck as pilgrim convoys passed through the central Karrada district. |
| The city has been under heavy security measures because of the pilgrimage. | The city has been under heavy security measures because of the pilgrimage. |
| Despite the security, gunmen shot dead seven pilgrims in the southern outskirts of Baghdad on Sunday. | Despite the security, gunmen shot dead seven pilgrims in the southern outskirts of Baghdad on Sunday. |
| Among the dead in Monday's attack were women and children, security and hospital officials told AFP news agency. | Among the dead in Monday's attack were women and children, security and hospital officials told AFP news agency. |
| The BBC's Jim Muir in Baghdad says that major gatherings for Shia religious ceremonies have frequently been the target for bomb attacks, blamed on Sunni extremists. | The BBC's Jim Muir in Baghdad says that major gatherings for Shia religious ceremonies have frequently been the target for bomb attacks, blamed on Sunni extremists. |
| Such attacks were a feature of the cycle of sectarian violence that gripped Iraq last year. | Such attacks were a feature of the cycle of sectarian violence that gripped Iraq last year. |
| The attacks have been greatly reduced by US and Iraqi government forces taking action against Sunni-based insurgents on the one hand, and the Shia militias on the other. | The attacks have been greatly reduced by US and Iraqi government forces taking action against Sunni-based insurgents on the one hand, and the Shia militias on the other. |
| But our correspondent says that stopping suicide bombers who move among crowds on foot, especially women wearing voluminous clothing, is particularly difficult. | But our correspondent says that stopping suicide bombers who move among crowds on foot, especially women wearing voluminous clothing, is particularly difficult. |
| The pilgrimage, which commemorates the death of the revered eighth-century imam Musa al-Kadhim, will reach a climax on Tuesday and more than a million worshippers are expected. | The pilgrimage, which commemorates the death of the revered eighth-century imam Musa al-Kadhim, will reach a climax on Tuesday and more than a million worshippers are expected. |
| In 2005 more than 900 people died in a stampede on the route to the shrine. The panic had been started by rumours of a suicide bomber in the crowd. | In 2005 more than 900 people died in a stampede on the route to the shrine. The panic had been started by rumours of a suicide bomber in the crowd. |