On Tuesday, a car bomb exploded in a busy market area in Kufa, an Iraqi Shiite city. According to Agence France Presse, 16 people were killed and 70 people were wounded.
According to Mayor Abu Dhar Yussef, a car packed with explosives appeared to have targeted a two-story restaurant that was populated with pilgrims flocking to the shrines. He went on to question why it took security forces more than half an hour to get to the area. He stated, "Why did they not send us more support than just some ambulances and firemen?"
Angry crowds, chanting anti-American slogans and condemning terrorism, filled the main square and brandished bloodied body parts to news cameras.
Hussein Kadhim shouted, "We blame the Iraqi government and the American army for this incident. How could a driver leave his car in this area? How could he have passed through several checkpoints and then park it in a forbidden zone."
In addition, on Tuesday, a suicide attack on a police station in Jalawlah, an area inhabited predominantly by Kurdish Shiites, killed two police and wounded 20 others, mostly civilians and in Baghdad itself, a bomb exploded killing two people and injuring four others, according to medical sources.
Also Tuesday, a roadside bomb went off next to a passing mini bus in the Shiite area of Zafaraniyah on the southeastern outskirts of Baghdad, killing three passengers and injuring five others, police said.
