Iraq bombing leaves 3 dead
A car bomb ripped through a parking lot used by pilgrims in the Shiite holy city of Najaf on Saturday, killing three people in an attack that was almost certainly intended to ignite sectarian passions the day before Iraqis go to the polls.
Two Iranians and an Iraqi were killed in the explosion about 300 yards from the Imam Ali shrine, one of the holiest sites in Shiite Islam. The attack near an Iranian tour bus also wounded 54 people, 19 of them Iranians, police said.
The parliamentary elections Sunday find Iraqis choosing between secular and religious politicians, and hoping to close the door on a return to the sectarian war that crippled the country from 2005 to ’07.
In televised comments, the reclusive Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr, who is thought to be in Iran, urged his supporters to vote.
The country is in a lockdown for the polls. Authorities have sealed provincial borders, and a vehicle curfew was imposed late Saturday, to be lifted Monday.
Baghdad security spokesman Maj. Gen. Qassim Atta Moussawi told reporters that the nation was prepared for any attacks. He announced that Iraqi security forces recently had found four suicide explosives belts and raided a workshop where militants were manufacturing small bombs to attach to cars.
The Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella group of insurgents, has distributed fliers in Baghdad warning voters:
“Elections equal voting for enemies of God. Are you going to participate in the elections and voting?”
Fakhrildeen is a special correspondent.
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