Last update - 00:00 15/08/2007
Iraqi officials say over 200 killed, 300 hurt in four suicide attacks
By The Associated Press
Four suicide bombers struck nearly simultaneously at communities of a small Kurdish sect in northwestern Iraq, killing at least 200 people and wounding 300 more, Iraqi military and local officials said.
The death toll was the highest in a concerted attack since November 23, when 215 people were killed by mortar fire and five car bombs in Baghdad's Shiite enclave of Sadr City.
The bombs tore through the districts near Qahataniya, 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of Mosul, Iraq's third-largest city, said Abdul-Rahman al-Shimiri, the top government official in the area, and Iraq army Capt. Mohammed Ahmed.
They said at least 30 homes were destroyed in the bombings.
Yazidis are members of an ancient, primarily Kurdish, religious sect that worships an angel figure that some Christians and Muslims believe to be the devil.
Dhakil Qassim, mayor of Sinjar, a town near the attacks, said Al-Qaida in Iraq was behind the bombings, citing what he said were Kurdish government intelligence reports.
"This is a terrorist act and the people targeted are poor Yazidis who have nothing to do with the armed conflict," Qassim said. Al-Qaida fighters are very active in this area near the Syrian border.
The United States condemned the bombings as "barbaric attacks on innocent civilians," and extended its sympathies to families of the victims.
"Extremists continue to show to what lengths they will go to stop Iraq from becoming a stable and secure country," the White House said in a statement.
"We will continue to work with the Iraqi government and the Iraqi Security Forces to stabilize the country and beat back these vicious and heartless murderers."