IRAQ: A suicide attack inside Iraq's interior ministry compound by two bombers dressed as senior officers killed 28 people yesterday as the US ambassador watched a parade nearby.
Al-Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility for the assault, in which 25 people were also wounded. It said the bombers evaded nine checkpoints, prompting questions about security measures at such a high-profile target at such a sensitive time.
US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad was among dozens of dignitaries attending the parade in east Baghdad in honour of Police Day, a celebration much-marked in the days of Saddam Hussein's police state.
This year it was seen as an opportunity to review progress among Iraq's US-trained forces in combating the Sunni Arab revolt.
The ambassador was unhurt, US officials said, and the parade went ahead as planned after the attack, which followed three days after Iraq's bloodiest day in months killed 120, including 70 police recruits in the Sunni Arab city of Ramadi.
As sectarian and ethnic tension continues while politicians await final results from last month's election, Sunni Arabs - backed by the UN - complained about a US military raid on a big Baghdad mosque complex on Sunday.
They called it "sinful" and a threat to efforts to promote peace and stability.
Yesterday's attackers on the interior ministry wore the uniforms of a police major and a lieutenant colonel, suggesting that to avoid closer scrutiny, the bombers may have been older than the youngsters typically associated with suicide attacks.
Both had security passes which enabled them to go through the compound's main checkpoint and would have admitted them to the ministry building itself.
"We're dying to know how they got hold of these badges to enter the building," one police source said, with deliberate irony. "This is a disaster."
It is not the first time bombers have used uniforms to approach their targets; the clothing of Iraq's police, army and other forces is readily available in markets, creating confusion for many over who really is representing the state.
Once inside the checkpoint, guards became suspicious of one of the attackers because of his bulk and shot at him, detonating his explosive belt. The second bomber then blew up.
"Two brothers . . . got through nine checkpoints that the infidels set up around the building, then one of them piled into dozens of ministry officers," al-Qaeda said in a statement posted on a website generally used by insurgents.
"After fear spread among the apostates, the second brother blew up his belt, bringing great misfortune upon them," read the statement, whose authenticity could not be verified.
The ministry has been targeted by insurgents before and has become something of a hate symbol for Sunni Arabs, who accuse it of running Shia sectarian death squads.
Meanwhile, US officials said bad weather might have caused Saturday's helicopter crash in the north of the country.
They also confirmed that eight of the 12 people killed were military personnel, pushing the US death toll in Iraq above 2,200. - (Reuters)