Blast at Iraq Market Raises Fears of More Strikes

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Car bomb kills dozens in southern Iraq (MSNBC, June 10, 2009) — A car bomb rips through a market in southern Iraq, killing about 30 people. MSNBC.com’s Dara Brown reports. (00:38)

June 10, 2009

BAGHDAD — A car bomb blew up Wednesday in a packed outdoor food market in one of the most peaceful areas of Iraq’s Shiite south, killing about 30 people and wounding dozens more.

The blast raised fears that militants may be planning more strikes in remote, poorly secured areas, seeking to stretch Iraq’s security services as they take on a bigger role in Baghdad and other flashpoint cities.

Angry townspeople swarmed around police in the wake of the attack, cursing and blaming them for failing to prevent the bombing. …

No group claimed responsibility for the explosion, which occurred during the morning shopping period in Bathaa, a small Euphrates River town near Nasiriyah about 200 miles southeast of Baghdad. …

The blast was the latest in a series of high-profile explosions that have raised concerns about a resurgence of violence as the U.S. military faces a June 30 deadline to withdraw from urban areas in Iraq.

Police chief fired

It was the deadliest bombing in the Nasiriyah area since Nov. 12, 2003, when a suicide truck bomber attacked the headquarters of Italian forces stationed there, killing more than 30 people.

Since then, however, surrounding Dhi Qar province has been relatively peaceful. Security responsibility for the area was transferred from the U.S.-led coalition to the Iraqis in September 2006 while Sunni-Shiite warfare was raging in Baghdad and elsewhere in the country. …

Stunned survivors expressed shock that their town was targeted. Some voiced anger at the police for lax security, prompting the provincial governor to fire the town police chief. …

Grisly scene

After the blast, dozens of young men gathered at the blast site, shouting and cursing the police for lax security, according to eyewitnesses. Iraqi army soldiers rushed to the scene to protect the police.

Witnesses described a grisly scene of mangled bodies, including women and children, littering the main street in the first terrifying moments after the blast. So many victims were blown to pieces that authorities were having trouble determining the precise death toll. …

Persistent violence in areas of Iraq has raised new questions about the readiness of Iraqi forces to take over their own security. …

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