Baghdad Bombings Kill at Least 57 Amid Shiite-Sunni Tensions
December 27, 2011, 5:48 AM ESTBy Khalid Al-Ansary and Nayla Razzouk
Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) --Bombings that targeted civilians killed at least 57 people in Baghdad amid an escalation of political infighting in Iraq that has followed the withdrawal of U.S. troops.
The attacks yesterday also injured 176, Ziad Tariq, a spokesman for the Health Ministry, said by phone from the capital. Residential areas, schools and shops were hit, said Qassim Atta al-Mousawi, spokesman for the security forces in Baghdad. The blasts took place in mainly Shiite Muslim areas, where security forces cordoned off neighborhoods and some businesses shut for the day.
“The timing of the crimes and the choice of their areas confirms again to all those in doubt the political nature of the objectives that these people want to achieve,” Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said in a statement on his website. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks.
Tensions between al-Maliki’s Shiite-led allies and Sunni politicians have intensified since a warrant was issued this week for the arrest of Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, a Sunni, on terrorism charges.
The case comes amid concern that the U.S. pullout will leave a security vacuum in Iraq, which seeks investment and expertise to develop the world’s fifth-largest crude reserves. Iraqi crude oil production has jumped to the highest level in at least 20 years, or more than 3 million barrels a day, Hussain al-Shahristani, deputy prime minister for energy affairs, said yesterday.
‘Urgent’ Meeting
The leaders of parliamentary blocs plan to hold an “urgent” meeting today to discuss the security and political situation, according to a statement published yesterday on parliament’s website. Shiites and Sunnis have been at odds for more than a year over the formation of a unity government.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden yesterday called Iraqi President Jalal Talabani to offer “full support for his efforts, and those of other Iraqi leaders, to foster dialogue that will allow all Iraqi blocs to work through their differences together,” according to a White House statement released yesterday.
“Attempts such as this to derail Iraq’s continued progress will fail,” the statement from White House press secretary Jay Carney said. “Iraq has suffered heinous attacks like this in the past, and its security forces have shown they are up to the task of responding and maintaining stability.”
Criminal Actions
In a speech to mark the end of American operations in Iraq on Dec. 15, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said that Iraq would be tested by terrorism and those who seek to divide.
“The criminals and those behind them will not be able to change the course of events or the political process and will not escape the punishment that they will face sooner or later,” al-Maliki said. “I call on religious, political, tribal and national leaders to shoulder their responsibility at this critical time and to stand by the security forces.”
The Associated Press reported there were 16 bombings in Baghdad -- 14 in the morning and two in the evening -- and that the death toll was at least 69, citing Iraqi health and police officials.
Baghdad Governor Salah Abdul Razzak said in a statement that “we reject resorting to violence as a reaction to a political or judicial case. We heavily condemn the terrorist attacks.”
Al-Hashimi, who fled to the semi-autonomous northern region of Kurdistan, denied all charges on Dec. 20 and said he is ready to testify in his defense in a trial in Erbil, Kurdistan’s capital. He questioned the motivation for the accusations and said the case was timed to coincide with the U.S. forces’ withdrawal.
TV ‘Confessions’
Three of al-Hashimi’s bodyguards were detained and said in alleged confessions aired on state-run al-Iraqiya television on Dec. 19 that they were paid to commit murders for him. Al- Hashimi said the confessions were fabricated.
Al-Maliki said Dec. 21 his government will ask Kurdistan’s authorities to hand over al-Hashimi and pledged to guarantee him a fair trial in Baghdad.
“I don’t think that the whole issue is judicial, it rather has political dimensions at this critical moment” when the U.S. troops are leaving, Ferhad al-Atroshi, a Kurdish lawmaker, said in a telephone interview yesterday from the Kurdish city of Dahouk. Kurdistan shouldn’t hand over al-Hashimi because this will further escalate tensions between the Sunni and Shiite communities, he said.
Sunni Protest
A spokesman for the Kurdistan Regional Government wasn’t available to comment on the case. Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani has called for urgent talks to avoid the collapse of the political process.
One of Iraq’s largest political blocs, Iraqiya, which draws support from Sunnis, announced the suspension of its participation in parliament on Dec. 17.
Al-Maliki said Dec.21 that his deputy, Saleh al-Mutlaq, a Sunni politician who had described him as a dictator in a recent television interview, was on “extended leave.”
A ceremony a week ago in Baghdad marked the end of the Iraq war that began in 2003. The U.S. deployment officially ends on Dec. 31.
--With assistance from Caroline Alexander in London. Editors: Terry Atlas, Joe Sobczyk
To contact the reporters on this story: Khalid Al-Ansari in Dubai at kalansari@bloomberg.net; Nayla Razzouk in Dubai at nrazzouk2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Louis Meixler at lmeixler@bloomberg.net
