Baghdad Bomb Kills 2 Shi'ite Pilgrims
By VOA News
08 February 2009
Iraqi police say a roadside bomb has exploded in Baghdad near a group of Shi'ite pilgrims, killing two of them and wounding 11 others.
Officials say the blast happened Sunday as the pilgrims were heading to the southern city of Karbala for a religious festival. Millions of Shi'ites gather in Karbala each year to mark the end of a 40-day mourning period for seventh century cleric Imam Hussein.
Meanwhile, an Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at then-U.S. President George W. Bush in Baghdad in December will go on trial in an Iraqi court February 19.
An Iraqi judicial official says Muntazer al-Zaidi will face a charge of assaulting a foreign leader, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years. An Iraqi court rejected an appeal by Al-Zaidi's lawyers to have him tried on a lesser charge of insulting Mr. Bush.
threw his shoes at Mr. Bush as the former U.S. president was speaking at a Baghdad news conference alongside Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki December 14. Mr. Bush ducked and avoided being hit.
The act made the reporter for Cairo-based television station al-Baghdadia a hero among many Arabs who resent the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq.
Al-Zaidi's relatives accuse Iraqi authorities of beating and torturing him in custody. Iraqi officials say he was struck in the face during a scuffle at the news conference, but there is no independent confirmation that he was abused in prison.
In another development, the U.S. military says an American soldier's weapon fired accidentally Saturday while a U.S. convoy was traveling south of Baghdad. Two Iraqis were reported wounded.
The U.S. military says it is investigating whether the Iraqis were hit by gunfire from the U.S. weapon.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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