| 25 October 2009 Baghdad bombings | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011) | |
| Location | Baghdad, Iraq |
| Date | 25 October 2009 10:30 am – (UTC+3) |
| Target | Multiple |
Attack type | Car bombs |
| Deaths | 155 [1] |
| Injured | 721+ [1] |
| Perpetrators |  Islamic State of Iraq [2] |
The 25 October 2009 Baghdad bombings were attacks in Baghdad, Iraq which killed 155 people and injured at least 721 people. [1]
The attack was caused by two suicide [3] car bombs, [4] in a minivan and a 26-seat bus, [5] which targeted the Ministry of Justice and the Baghdad Provincial Council building [6] in a quick succession at 10:30 am local time. [7] The Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works, which is approximately 50 metres (160 ft) from the Justice Ministry, also sustained severe damage. [8] Among the dead were 35 employees of the Ministry of Justice and at least 25 staff members of the Baghdad Provincial Council. Among the wounded were three American contractors. [9] A bus carrying children from a daycare next to the Justice Ministry was also hit, killing the driver and 2 dozen children on board as well as wounding six other children. [5]
The blasts badly damaged St George's church, the only Anglican church in Iraq. Canon Andrew White reported body parts had been blown into the church by the explosion and that a humanitarian medical clinic which operated on the site had been destroyed. [10]
It was the deadliest attack in Iraq since August 2007 [4] and took place very close to where car bombers killed at least 120 people at the Foreign and Finance Ministries two months earlier. [11]
Iraqi Deputy Interior Minister Ahmad al-Khafaji told Adnkronos International (AKI) that the bombs were manufactured inside the Green Zone, in a location right next to the blasts. Deputy Minister al-Khafaji said, "It seems the individuals who carried out the attacks had rented a house or commercial premises in a sidestreet of the area they intended to target and gradually sneaked in the bomb-making materials." [12]
On 11 March 2010, Iraqi police arrested Munaf Abdul Rahim al-Rawi, the mastermind of the bombings. His capture also led to the death of Al-Qaeda leaders Abu Ayub al-Masri and Abu Omar al-Baghdadi. Al-Rawi was called the "Governor of Baghdad" and masterminded many of the other Baghdad bombings since Aug. 2009, according to Major General Qassim Atta, a Baghdad military spokesman. [13] [14]
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had been trying to portray the country as safer than the period of civil war from 2006 to 2008. Local politicians said the blasts were trying to destroy faith in Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his ability to secure the country after the U.S. withdrawal. [3] He faced re-election in January 2010, and much of his popularity had rested on the safety of the country. The bombings prompted some Iraqis to reconsider their support for the Prime Minister. [11]
The Prime Minister responded, stating, "The cowardly acts of terrorism which occurred today, must not weaken the resolution of Iraqis to continue their journey and to fight the followers of the fallen regime, the Baathists and al-Qaeda." [3]
US President Barack Obama strongly condemned the attacks; [4] Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement that the U.S. would work together with Iraqis "to combat all forms of violence and attempts at intimidation." [15]
Events in the year 2005 in Iraq.
At approximately 6:44 a.m. Arabia Standard Time on 22 February 2006, al-Askari Shrine in Samarra, Iraq, was severely damaged in a bombing attack amidst the then-ongoing Iraq War. Constructed in the 10th century, it is one of the holiest sites in Shia Islam. Despite the magnitude of the explosions, there were no casualties. American president George W. Bush asserted that the bombing had been carried out by Al-Qaeda in Iraq, which denied involvement in the attack.
The following lists events that happened during 2006 in Iraq.
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Events in the year 2008 in Iraq.
The August 2009 Baghdad bombings were three coordinated car bomb attacks and a number of mortar strikes in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on 19 August 2009. The explosives were detonated simultaneously across the capital at approximately 10:45 in the morning, killing at least 101 people and wounding at least 565, making it the deadliest attack since the 14 August 2007 Yazidi communities bombings in northern Iraq which killed almost 800 people. The bombings targeted both government and privately-owned buildings.
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Events in the year 2010 in Iraq.
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Islamic State of Iraq claimed the first of the two attacks.
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On 22 December 2011, a series of coordinated attacks occurred in Baghdad, Iraq, killing 69 people. This was the first major attack following U.S. withdrawal from Iraq.
The 23 July 2012 Iraq attacks were a series of simultaneous, coordinated bombings and shootings that struck the Iraqi security force and Shi'ite Muslim communities. At least 116 people were killed and 299 wounded in the attacks, making them the deadliest attacks in the country since May 2010. The Islamic State of Iraq claimed responsibility for the attacks.
The Islamic State of Iraq was a Salafi jihadist militant organization that fought the forces of the U.S.-led coalition during the Iraqi insurgency. The organization aimed to overthrow the Iraqi federal government and establish an Islamic state governed by Sharia law in Iraq.
In May 2016, the Islamic State conducted a series of bombing attacks in and around Shia neighbourhoods in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, killing and wounding hundreds. According to ISIL, attacks were aimed at Shia fighters.
The January2021 Baghdad bombings were a pair of terrorist attacks that occurred on 21 January 2021, carried out by two suicide bombers at an open-air market in central Baghdad, Iraq. They killed at least 32 people and injured another 110. This was the Iraqi capital’s first terrorist attack since 2019.
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