Suicide Car Bomber Kills 18 Iraqi Kids (link)Posted by Kyer at July 13, 2005 08:04 PM | TrackBack
By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - A suicide car bomb exploded next to U.S. troops handing out candy and toys, killing 18 children and teenagers Wednesday. Parents heard the shattering explosion and raced out to the discover the worst - children's mangled, bloodied bodies strewn on the street.
Up to 27 people were killed by the blast in the Shiite Muslim neighborhood, including an American soldier. At least 70 people were injured, a newborn and three U.S. soldiers among them.
Children's slippers lay piled near the blast crater not far from a crumbled child's bicycle as blood pooled in the street.
Twelve of the dead were 13 or younger and six were between 14 and 17, said police Lt. Mohammed Jassim Jabr. Among the wounded was 4-day-old Miriam Jabber, cut slightly by flying glass and debris.
"There were some American troops blocking the highway when a U.S. Humvee came near a gathering of children," said Karim Shukir, 42. The troops began handing out candy and smiley-face key chains.
"Suddenly, a speeding car bomb...struck both the Humvee and the children," Shukir said.