Politics

Iraqi PM says terror network behind deadly Sadr City bombing arrested

An explosion rocked a crowded market in Baghdad's Sadr City on the eve of Eid al-Adha, reportedly killing at least 35 people.

Kurdistan 24 2021/07/24 18:10

A photo circulated on social media purportedly shows the scene immediately following an explosion in Baghdad's Sadr City, July 19, 2021. (Photo: Social Media)

Iraq Iraq Baghdad Bombing

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi announced on Saturday the arrest of a terror network suspected to be behind the deadly suicide bombing in Baghdad Sadr City last week.

The incident occurred on the eve of the Eid al-Adha festival in the crowded al-Wahilat market in Sadr City, killing at least 35 civilians, according to the latest reports.

Videos purported to be of the explosion's immediate aftermath circulating on social media show crowds fleeing what appears to be the explosion site, just moments after detonation.

Kadhimi said that a security operation led to the arrests of the members of "the cowardly terrorist network that planned and executed" the attack in Sadr City.

"The network's elements will be presented today before the law and our people, and they will serve as an example to every unjust and sinful aggressor," the premier added.

In April, a car bomb targeted a popular outdoor market in the Habibya neighborhood of Sadr City, leaving more than a dozen people killed and injured

An earlier dual suicide attack in January at another crowded market in central Baghdad, leaving at least 28 killed and scores wounded, according to security sources.