130 people killed, wounded as dual bomb attack targets Shiite mosque in Baghdad

Baghdad (Iraqinews.com) – At least 130 people were killed and wounded Wednesday in a deadly explosion near a Shiite mosque in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, a security source was quoted as saying.

“Two bombs went off near an ammunition cache placed in a Shiite mosque in the Shiite bastion of Sadr City in Baghdad, leaving 20 people killed so far,” the source told Alghad Press.

“Up to 110 people were also wounded as a result of the explosion,” the source pointed out, adding that security forces rushed to the blast site and opened a probe into the matter.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) militant group, in most cases, is responsible for attacks targeting crowded areas, including markets, cafes and mosques across Iraq.

Sadr City is a stronghold of the nationalist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, whose political bloc won a May 12 parliamentary election. Parliament ordered a national recount of votes on Wednesday.

The Iraqi capital has seen almost daily bombings and armed attacks against security members, paramilitary troops and civilians since the Iraqi government launched a wide-scale campaign to retake Islamic State-occupied areas in 2016.