The White House yesterday condemned bombings in Baghdad that killed nearly 120 people and wounded 200, saying the attack only strengthened the United States’ resolve to confront Islamic State (IS) militants.
“We remain united with the Iraqi people and government in our combined efforts to destroy ISIL,” the White House statement said, using an acronym for the self-declared Islamic State.
A refrigerator truck packed with explosives blew up in Baghdad’s central district of Karrada, killing 115 people and injuring at least 200.
In a second attack, a roadside device exploded around midnight in a market in al-Shaab, a Shia district, killing at least two people, police and medical sources said.
Islamic State claimed responsibility for the bloodshed in a statement circulated online by supporters of the extremist group.
It said the truck blast was a suicide bombing.
The attack on the shopping area of Karrada is the deadliest since US-backed Iraqi forces last month cleared Islamic State militants from their stronghold of Fallujah, an hour’s drive west of the capital.
The market bombing was the deadliest so far this year.
The head of the Central Intelligence Agency, John Brennan, has said Islamic State may find targets away from battlefields where the group has faced losses.
“To compensate for territorial losses, ISIL (Islamic State) will probably rely more on guerrilla tactics, including high-profile attacks outside territory it holds,” Brennan told lawmakers last month.
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