Bombs Explode in 2 Baghdad Markets, Killing 68
By VOA News
01 February 2008
Iraqi police say bomb blasts at two Baghdad pet markets have killed at least 68 people and wounded more than 100 others.
The attacks are the deadliest in the Iraqi capital since last August, when three car bombs killed more than 80 people.
U.S. and Iraqi officials say both attacks were carried out by women strapped with explosives, which were then detonated remotely.
Brigadier General Joseph Anderson, chief of staff for coalition ground forces in Iraq, says initial indications are that al-Qaida in Iraq is responsible for Saturday's bombings.
Militants have targeted the pet markets several times since the start of the Iraq war.
Meanwhile, General Anderson also noted that during the past week, the overall number of attacks nationwide in Iraq remained down and below the average of the past three months.
But Anderson says casualties among coalition forces and Iraqi civilians increased last month, which he attributes largely to the recent U.S.-led offensive north of Baghdad.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
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