Suicide car bomber targets pilgrims

A SUICIDE car bomb tore through buses carrying Iranian pilgrims near a Shi’ite shrine in the holy city of Kufa yesterday, killing as many as 12 people and wounding 39.

The attack occurred near the shrine of Maitham al-Tamar.

Tehran condemned the attack and called on the Iraqi government to bring those responsible for it to justice.

Police said the suicide bomber was driving a minivan behind two buses and detonated his explosives as the pilgrims were getting off.

Nobody claimed responsibility for the attack.

But suspicion fell on Sunni extremists amid rising sectarian tensions in the country.

At least 16 other violent deaths were reported by police, including 11 bullet-riddled bodies left in different locations across Baghdad, with several bound and showing signs of torutre.