Spate of explosions kill 8 in violence-wracked Baghdad

By Ibrahim Salih

BAGHDAD (AA) – Eight people were killed by five separate explosions that went off in different parts of Iraqi capital Baghdad on Thursday, according to a local police source.

Baghdad Police Captain Yasser al-Mostafa told Anadolu Agency that three civilians had been killed -- and nine injured -- when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near a market in the city’s northern Al-Tarmia district.

Another two civilians were killed -- and six others injured -- by a similar bombing near a cafe in the southern Al-Madain neighborhood, according to al-Mostafa.

The police officer went on to say that a third IED attack in Baghdad’s eastern Al-Amin district had left a sixth civilian dead and another nine injured, while two more IED attacks in the northern Al-Seleikh district and eastern Al-Obeidi neighborhood had each killed one civilian and left a total of 12 others injured.

While no group has claimed responsibility for Friday’s bloodshed, the Iraqi authorities typically blame the Daesh terrorist group for such seemingly random acts of violence.

Iraq’s security situation has deteriorated dramatically since mid-2014, when Daesh overran the northern city of Mosul before capturing additional territory in both Iraq and neighboring Syria.

Last week, the Iraqi army, backed by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, launched a wide-ranging operation aimed at retaking Mosul, Daesh’s last stronghold in northern Iraq.

While most villages on Mosul’s outskirts have fallen before the military onslaught, Daesh remains in control of the city itself, along with parts of western Iraq.