Seven killed in central Baghdad blast
A suicide car bomber struck a predominantly Shiite neighbourhood in central Baghdad today, killing at least seven people and wounding 16, police said.
The blast occurred shortly after two rockets slammed into the heavily fortified Green Zone in the Iraqi capital.
Massive plumes of black smoke rose into the air and heavy gunfire rang out across the city centre in the aftermath.
The suicide bomber struck in the central neighbourhood of Karradah, the second bombing to strike the area in three days.
Police said at least seven people were killed and 14 wounded, including three policemen.
The blast shattered windows in surrounding apartment buildings and devastated several vehicles as sirens from emergency vehicles wailed.
It struck shortly after the explosions in the Green Zone, which houses the US and British embassies and Iraqi government offices, the public address system inside the massive compound could be heard warning in English that people should take cover: “This is not a drill.”
The US military said initial reports indicated that at least two rockets struck the Green Zone.
