Top Kurdistan Region officials condemn deadly Baghdad explosion

Halgurd Sherwani 2021/07/20 11:13

Iraqis inspect the site of the explosion in a popular market in the mostly Shia neighborhood of Sadr City, east of Baghdad, on July 19, 2021. (Photo: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP)

Kurdistan Krg Nechirvan Barzani Masoud Barzani Iraq Baghdad Sadr City ISIS

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Senior officials from the Kurdistan Region on Tuesday condemned the latest bloody suicide bombing in the Iraqi capital that left dozens of people dead and injured.

The deadly bombing hit a popular market in eastern Baghdad’s Sadr City on the eve of the four-day Islamic Eid al-Adha where Muslims were busy preparing for the feast.

“This crime is indicative of the utmost cruelty and inhumanity of the terrorists that on Day of Arafat [the day before the feast],” President Masoud Barzani, the current head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and former president of the Kurdistan Region, said in a statement released on Tuesday.

ISIS on Tuesday morning claimed the responsibility for the attack, which was carried out by one of its suicide bombers.

“They are [attackers] the enemies of religion, humanity, and the sacred values, and do not hold to any principles,” Barzani said of the perpetrators, adding that they would “pay a price” for their crimes.

Barzani extended his condolences to the victims of the attack and wished a speedy recovery for the wounded, the statement noted.

The main market in heavily populated Shia-majority Sadr City is a frequent target for terrorist attacks. In addition to Monday’s blast, the popular Baghdad neighborhood has witnessed three other bloody bombings since ISIS was declared defeated in Iraq. More than 20 people were killed and wounded in the last attack, a deadly twin suicide bombing at a market in April.

Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani similarly expressed his condolences to the victims of the deadly incident in a statement.

“The Kurdistan Region’s hospitals are ready to provide any necessary aid to the victims,” Barzani said late Monday.

Despite the declaration of ISIS’s territorial defeat in 2017, the group has proven capable of launching small-scale attacks in Iraq, targeting civilians but also launching hit-and-run raids in areas disputed by Baghdad and Erbil.

International coalition forces and government officials both in the Kurdish and Iraqi governments constantly stress that the terror group still poses a threat, urging continued cooperation between national and international forces.