At least 64 dead in Baghdad market bombs

Baghdad - Two female suicide bombers blew themselves up Friday in separate attacks on Baghdad pet bazaars, killing at least 64 people and wounding dozens, police said.

The attacks were the deadliest in the Iraqi capital since 30,000 more American troops flooded into the center of the country last spring.

In the first attack, a woman detonated explosives hidden under her traditional black Islamic robe at about 10:20 a.m. in the central al-Ghazl market. The weekly bazaar has been bombed several times since the war started but has recently re-emerged as a popular shopping venue as Baghdad security improved and a Friday ban on driving was lifted.

Police said at least 46 people were killed and 82 wounded. Firefighters scooped up debris scattered among pools of blood, clothing and pigeon carcasses.

About 20 minutes later, a second female suicide bomber struck a bird market in a predominantly Shiite area in southeastern Baghdad. That blast killed as many as 18 people and wounded 25, police said.

The attacks shortly before the weekly Islamic call to prayer resounded across the capital were the latest in a series of violent incidents that have been chipping away at Iraqi confidence in the permanence of recent security gains.

Police initially said the bomb was hidden in a box of birds but determined it was a suicide attack after finding the woman's head, an officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information.

At least four other suicide bombings have been staged by women since November, all in the volatile Diyala province northeast of the capital.

The most recent was on Jan. 16 when a female suicide bomber detonated her explosives as Shiites were preparing for a ceremony marking the holiday of Ashoura in a Shiite village near the Diyala provincial capital of Baqouba.

Involving women in fighting violates religious taboos in Iraq, but the U.S. military has warned that al-Qaida in Iraq is recruiting women and youths to stage suicide attacks as the insurgents become increasingly desperate to thwart stepped-up security measures.

Women in Iraq often wear a black Islamic robe known as an abaya and it can be easier for them to avoid thorough searches at checkpoints because of Islamic sensitivities about their treatment.

Many teenage boys were among the casualties in the al-Ghazl bombing, according to police and hospital officials.

A bomb hidden in a box of small birds also exploded at the al-Ghazl market in late November, killing at least 15 people and wounding dozens. The U.S. military blamed the November attack on Iranian-backed Shiite militants, saying they had hoped al-Qaida in Iraq would be held responsible for the attack so Iraqis would turn to them for protection.

Medical officials said those wounded in Friday's attack were sent to five hospitals in the city due to the overwhelming numbers of victims.

One pigeon vendor said the market had been particularly busy because it was a pleasantly crisp and clear winter day after a recent cold spell.

"I have been going to the pet market with my friend every Friday, selling and buying pigeons," said Ali Ahmed, who was hit by shrapnel in his legs and chest. "It was nice weather today and the market was so crowded."

He said he was worried about his friend, Zaki, who disappeared from sight after the blast occurred about 40 yards away from where they were standing.

"I just remember the horrible scene of the bodies of dead and wounded people mixed with the blood of animals and birds, then I found myself lying in a hospital bed," Ali said.

There were conflicting details about the second blast in the New Baghdad area.

The U.S. military said initial reporting indicated it was a suicide car bombing carried out by a woman, but Iraqi police said the female attacker detonated an explosives belt at the entrance to the bazaar.

Casualty tolls also differed, with the military saying about 10 people were killed and 20 wounded and Iraqi police reporting 18 killed and 25 wounded.

The U.S. military has been unable to stop the suicide bombings despite a steep drop in violence in the past six months, but the number of casualties has been lower than many attacks last year that saw death tolls topping 100.

The explosions on Friday were the deadliest in the capital since an April 18 car bombing killed 116 and wounded 145.

The number of Iraqi civilians and security forces killed in January fell to at least 599, an Associated Press tally showed, the lowest monthly death toll since December 2005, and continuing a downward trend since the fall. The figure as tabulated by Iraqi officials in the ministries of Defense, Interior and Health was slightly lower, at 543.

U.S. forces, meanwhile, have expanded offensives in central and northern Iraq, seeking to build on gains against al-Qaida in Iraq in the past year. But the latest campaigns also have driven up the military's death toll after months of decline.

Two U.S. soldiers were killed Thursday — one by a roadside bomb in Baghdad and another by a rocket or mortar attack on a convoy support center south of the capital, the military reported.

At least 39 U.S. soldiers have been killed in January — well above the 23 in December but still sharply lower than a year ago. In January last year, 83 soldiers were killed in Iraq.

Since the beginning of the war in 2003, at least 3,943 members of the U.S. military have died. The total for January could rise; occasionally the military reports new casualties a few days after they occur.  -- Associated Press

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