Baghdad ministry blast kills 6, v-president unhurt

[maddezmom]

BAGHDAD, Feb 26 (Reuters) - A blast at an Iraqi ministry during a ceremony attended by Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi killed six people on Monday but the vice president was unhurt, a ministry employee and police said.

Police said six people had been killed and 31 wounded. The employee said he had seen four dead bodies.

Two police sources said the blast happened inside a hall at the time Abdul-Mahdi, a Shi'ite leader, was at the Public Works Ministry building.

more:http://mobile.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L26634274.htm

Bomb attack on Baghdad ministry
BAGHDAD (AFP) - A bomb exploded in the Iraqi ministry of public works on Monday during a visit by Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi.

State television said 10 people were killed in the blast and several wounded, but an interior ministry official said that the Shiite leader was himself unhurt
more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070226/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestministry_070226092445;_ylt=AiD030f.vua71K9.SIqzGMSaOrgF


BAGHDAD, Feb 26 (Reuters) - A blast at an Iraqi ministry during a ceremony attended by Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi killed four people on Monday but the vice president was unhurt, an employee at the ministry told Reuters.

~snip~

The employee said he had thrown himself on top of the minister at the time of the blast. The minister was also unhurt.

As the employee spoke, the sounds of shouting could be heard in the background.

It was unclear if the attack was an assassination attempt. Iraq's top leaders are often targeted by militants. Abdul-Mahdi is a senior Shi'ite leader.

http://mobile.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L26634274.htm

[maddezmom]

1. AP: Iraqi VP not harmed in car bombing atleast 10 killed, 18 injured

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A parked car bomb exploded Monday near a building where the Iraqi vice president was attending a conference, killing at least 10 civilians and injuring 18. The Iraqi leader was not hurt.

Adel Abdel-Mahdi, a Shiite and one of the two Iraqi vice presidents, was not in danger, according to an aide who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief media. Police said at least 10 people were killed in the blast.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070226/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_violence

IRAQI VP TAKEN TO HOSPITAL WITH MINOR WOUNDS AFTER BAGHDAD MINIS
26 Feb 2007 10:13:07 GMT

MORE >>
IRAQI VP TAKEN TO HOSPITAL WITH MINOR WOUNDS AFTER BAGHDAD MINISTRY BLAST - POLITICAL SOURCE


http://mobile.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/YAT636907.htm

[maddezmom]

2. Iraqi vice president wounded in bombing; attack kills 12, wounds 42

Iraqi vice president wounded in bombing; attack kills 12, wounds 42
BAGHDAD (CNN) -- A bomb struck Iraq's Ministry of Municipalities on Monday, killing at least 12 people and wounding 42 others, including Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul Mahdi, an Iraqi Health Ministry official said.

According to the official, the vice president is being treated at Ibn Sina Hospital in the Green Zone. The extent of his injuries were not immediately known.

http://us.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/02/26/monday/index.html

[Eugene]

3. Interesting in both method and timing.

The bomb was planted in the ceiling according to this BBC report:

Last Updated: Monday, 26 February 2007, 13:03 GMT

Blast injures top Iraqi officials

-snip-

"The explosion happened when the party arrived at the meeting room.
It appears that according to the first reports we have that the bomb
was in the ceiling of the room," the MP is quoted saying.

-snip-

Iraq's president, Jalal Talabani, who would be succeeded by Mr Abdul
Mahdi if he were incapacitated, is currently being treated in hospital
in Jordan, after falling ill on Sunday.

-snip-

Full article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6396783.stm

However dangerous the insurgents are, Iraq's leaders need to watch their backs.

[maddezmom]

4. now they are saying the bomb may have been hidden in the podium

As U.S. forces sealed off the area around the municipal building, investigators grappled with the troubling question of how the bomb was smuggled into the ministry of public works — a seven-story structure with crack surveillance systems from its days as offices for Saddam Hussein's feared intelligence service.

The bomb — possibly hidden in the podium — went off moments after the minister for public works finished a speech in the third-floor chamber, witnesses said. Abdul-Mahdi had made a welcoming address a few minutes earlier, raising speculation the bomb could have been on a timer-trigger that missed the vice president by sheer luck.

Among those killed were several ministry employees, police said. More than 25 were wounded, including the public works minister, Riyad Gharib.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070227/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

[maddezmom]

5. Insider believed behind attack on Iraq VP

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Police probing how a bomb was smuggled into a Baghdad ministry in a bid to kill Iraq's Shiite vice president believe the attack was carried out by an insider.

"Thirty-five employees of the public works ministry are now under interrogation by the interior ministry about how the bomb was brought into the building," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity on Tuesday.

"Most of them are bodyguards and ministry security men," he said, adding that those wounded in the explosion will be questioned once they recover.

~snip~

State television described Monday's bombing as an assassination attempt while the security official said it appeared that high explosive was used.

"Employees were told a day before that the vice president was going to attend the ceremony. So the person who planted the bomb was already aware that he was going to be present," the security official said.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070227/wl_mideast_afp/iraq_070227093357

[maddezmom]

6. Suspect arrested over Iraq VP assassination bid (after reviewing video tapes)

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi authorities have arrested a suspect in the attempted assassination of Shiite Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi, an aide said Tuesday.

The aide said the arrest was made after reviewing security camera video from Monday’s blast, which ripped through an awards ceremony at the ministry of public works and killed at least 10 people.

~snip~

The aide declined to give any further details about the arrest or the suspect. He spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.


He said the bomb was planted under a chair in the first row of the meeting hall — about six feet from the vice president. Police initially thought the bomb was hidden under a speakers’ podium.

more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17358420/