13 dead in Baghdad mortar attack

At least 13 people died when mortars rained down on their Baghdad neighbourhood today.

Around 14 others were wounded by the mortar shells in southeast Baghdad, police said.

At least three mortars hit the Mashtal area on the eastern side of the Tigris River, a police officer said.

It was unclear whether they were aimed at the area, or whether the shells fell short of their intended targeted.

Police and witnesses said two of the mortar shells landed near a petrol station where people were lining up for fuel at the start of the working week. Many of the victims were burned by fuel that burst into flames from the attack, the officer said.

Associated Press Television footage showed at least two cars with their windshields and windows shattered.

"Shrapnel hit my front window...then two explosions took place," said minibus driver Ali Abdul-Karim, 28. "Me and other drivers ran fast toward the sound of the explosions, to help evacuate the victims."

Abdul-Karim described a ghastly scene, with rescuers scurrying to discern the wounded from the dead.

"I saw two elderly women bleeding and laying on the ground. I don't know whether they were injured or dead," he said. "I also saw three seriously wounded boys laying near their jerry cans. A man was running and screaming, with his hands on his belly, which was cut by shrapnel."

The wounded lay bandaged on gurneys at a nearby hospital. Male relatives of the victims, many in clothes stained with their loved ones' blood, milled around outside the neighbouring morgue, where at least 11 bodies were visible on metal shelves.

Mashtal is a Shiite-dominated neighbourhood in southeast Baghdad. Its main intersection, where the petrol station is located, leads to other Shiite slums such as Kamaliyah, Fudailiyah, and Sadr City.