Iraq: Bomb explodes near Sunni mosque, killing 6

Iraq: Bomb blast kills 6 near mosque north of Baghdad, latest in wave of Ramadan attacks

7/16/2013
ASSOCIATED PRESS
  • Mideast-Iraq-Bloody-Ramadan

    In this picture taken on Monday, July 15, 2013, Atheer Ali, 5, lies in a hospital bed after he sustained burns in a car bomb attack in Kut, Iraq. Ramadan is shaping up to be the deadliest in Iraq since a bloody insurgency and rampant sectarian killings had the country teetering on the edge of civil war more than half a decade ago. (AP Photo/ Karim Kadim)

    ASSOCIATED PRESS

    • A bombing victim in the flag-draped coffin is taken for burial in Kut, Iraq on Monday. Ramadan is shaping up to be the deadliest in Iraq since a bloody insurgency and rampant sectarian killings had the country teetering on the edge of civil war more than half a decade ago.
    A bombing victim in the flag-draped coffin is taken for burial in Kut, Iraq on Monday. Ramadan is shaping up to be the deadliest in Iraq since a bloody insurgency and rampant sectarian killings had the country teetering on the edge of civil war more than half a decade ago.

    BAGHDAD — Iraqi authorities say a bomb has exploded near a Sunni mosque as worshippers were leaving evening Ramadan prayers, killing at least six and wounding 17.

    Police say the blast struck around 9:45 p.m. today near the al-Asri mosque in the town of Muqdadiyah, about 90 kilometers (60 miles) north of Baghdad.

    Hospital officials confirmed the casualty toll. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to release the information.

    Iraq has been struck by a wave of deadly bombings and shootings since Ramadan began last week. It’s the latest in a spike of deadly attacks in recent months that are intensifying fears Iraq is slipping back into widespread chaos.