Zeenews Bureau
Baghdad: A truck explosion in Iraq’s Diwaniya on Tuesday claimed 25 lives and wounded at least 50 others, reports said. Attacks elsewhere claimed 7 lives, pegging the death toll at 32.
According to some, the blast in Diwaniya took place near a mosque in the market, where the Shia pilgrims were gathering for travelling to the holy city of Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad, for the festival of Shabaniyah.
The city of Karbala, too witnessed twin car bombings that killed four, wounding many others.
There were also blasts in the Sunni city of Taji, killing three, including one policeman.
The recent spate of attacks, with June being the bloodiest month this year, has been mainly targeting the Shia pilgrims.
Shiites are also often targeted by the extremist Sunni insurgency.
Karbala, the hub of shrines, is all set for the festival of Shabaniyah this Friday and Shias are celebrating the birth of the ninth-century Shiite leader known as the Hidden Imam.
Even though the security is on high alert, the Qaeda-influenced insurgents often succeed in staging blasts killing many.
Total death toll has been pegged at 282 in June itself, making it the most violent month sice US troops withdrew in mid-December.
With Agency Inputs
First Published: Tuesday, July 03, 2012, 18:12