Car bomb near Baghdad police headquarters kills 47

7.30am - By MARIAM KAROUNY and LUKE BAKER

BAGHDAD - A huge car bomb ripped through a crowded market near a Baghdad police headquarters on Tuesday, killing 47 people and wounding more than 110 in the deadliest single attack in Iraq's capital in six months.

In Baquba northeast of Baghdad, gunmen opened fire on a police minibus, killing 12 people, and 10 Iraqis were killed in clashes between US forces and guerrillas in the restive town of Ramadi, Health Ministry officials and witnesses said.

An internet statement in the name of the Tawhid and Jihad group led by Jordanian al Qaeda ally Abu Musab al-Zarqawi claimed responsibility for the Baghdad blast, which it said was carried out by a suicide attacker. The group also claimed responsibility for the attack on the police minibus.

Fighting has surged in Iraq over the last few days after US-led forces launched fierce offensives in a bid to retake pockets of the country that have fallen under guerrilla control and present problems in staging planned elections in January.

Gunmen opened fire on a US patrol near Mosul, killing one soldier and wounding five, the US military said.

The car bomb in Baghdad's Haifa Street, a flashpoint for guerrilla attacks, caused carnage in the packed market and streets near the police headquarters.

The Health Ministry said 47 people were killed and 114 were wounded. The Interior Ministry said at least one car bomb was used in the attack.

Rescuers pulled bodies from mangled market stalls. The area was littered with shoes, clothes and body parts, as well as fruit and vegetables from the market.

Bloodstained corpses lay on pavements strewn with chairs, glass and rubble from blown-out shop fronts. Dazed bystanders checked bodies for signs of life.

Smoke from blazing vehicles billowed into the sky as fire crews tried to douse flames. A huge crater was punched into the road. Ambulances with sirens wailing ferried the dead and wounded and US helicopters flew overhead.

"I was standing there talking to my friend when suddenly all I saw was blood, and my friend lying dead," said an Iraqi man who gave his name as Zafer, speaking from his hospital bed with blood and scratches on his face and bandages on his stomach.

Hospital workers hosed pools of blood from the floor.

After the bombing US troops took up positions in Haifa Street.

Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib visited the area to condemn the perpetrators as "enemies of Iraq" but he was confronted by an angy crowd chanting slogans against Prime Minister Iyad Allawi. "Down with Allawi!" they shouted.

Washington says Zarqawi is its top enemy in Iraq and has put a US$25 ($38.56) million price on his head.

"With the grace of God, a lion from our martyrdom brigades was successful in striking a centre for apostate police volunteers," said the statement, which could not be verified.

Another car exploded in a central Baghdad street, killing the driver. Police said he had been armed and suspected he was a suicide bomber whose vehicle detonated prematurely.

Guerrillas also blew up oil pipelines in northern Iraq, cutting exports through Turkey and forcing a nearby power station to be shut down. The attack meant large areas of Iraq were without electricity from 3am (11am Tuesday NZT) onwards.

On Sunday, guerrillas mounted multiple car bomb and mortar attacks in central Baghdad, during a day of violence in which more than 100 people were killed across the country.

Guerrillas frequently attack Iraq's US-backed security forces as part of a bloody campaign designed to destabilise the country and disrupt the January elections.

Speaking from Brussels during a tour of several European nations to seek debt relief and reconstruction and military aid, Iraq's interim President Ghazi Yawar said the elections should go ahead unless the United Nations say they are not feasible.

"It is a challenge to have the elections on time," Yawar said after talks with Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. "Unless the UN says it is impossible to hold it, we're going to hold it at that time."

Since the US-led invasion to oust Saddam Hussein in March last year, 768 US soldiers have been killed in action. The total Pentagon toll, including non-hostile deaths, is 1018.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq