20 dead as bombers strike at Shi'ite mosques in Iraq
Officials expect death toll to climb
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Suicide bombers targeting Shi'ite worshippers killed at least 20 people and injured dozens more at Baghdad mosques Thursday, officials said.
Both attacks took place as Shi'ites marked the first day of Eid, a three-day celebration that follows Ramadan, Islam's month of fasting.
Death tolls in the attacks probably will rise, officials said.
A suicide bomber strapped with explosives killed at least 12 worshippers and injured 25 as they left al-Rasoul mosque in Jadida, a largely Shi'ite district, police said. Officials described the bomber as a teenage male who detonated as guards were searching him near the gates of the mosque.
Bystanders were told not to help the wounded, said Mohammed Abu Mustafa, 45, who witnessed the blast. "The guards were shouting at people not to get close to the area because they feared there would be another explosion," he said.
Secondary explosions aimed at killing responders are common in Iraq.
Around the same time, at least eight people were killed and 10 injured in an attack in Zafaraniya, a neighborhood about 4 miles away. A suicide bomber driving a Mercedes-Benz packed with explosives is to blame, police said.
The bomber was trying to strike a Shi'ite mosque, officials said, but instead hit an Iraqi army vehicle parked in front of the mosque to protect worshippers.
My friends, this is not winning. This is an occupation bursting at the seams with violence. Caribou Barbie can say Obama refuses to admit the surge has worked all she wants, but when stuff like this is going on, he’s right to keep his mouth shut.
The media has stopped covering the war. You have to look for news on the war, and when you find it, it’s usually not good.
Joe Biden just sent his son off to Iraq. Sarah Palin sent her son last month. John McCain’s son is already serving there. This is unique for an election, and yet we don’t even talk about it.
No one wants to politicize the war but we can’t even talk about it except in the broadest of empty platitudes. That’s screwed up.
The war is still a burden on this country. It’s dragging us down economically and spiritually. And we won’t even talk about it.
