Geo World

Iraq suicide car bombing kills 25 police

Updated at: 1901 PST,  Thursday, May 05, 2011  HILLA: A suicide attacker blew up a bomb-filled car at a police station south of Baghdad, killing 25 policemen on Thursday. The attack, which also wounded at least 75 policemen, was the worst in Iraq in more than a month, and pushed security chiefs to install new checkpoints, tighten access to key roads and restrict movement between provinces. The bombing left a two-metre (six-foot) crater and badly damaged the police station in the centre of the mainly Shiite city of Hilla, capital of Babil province, in addition to several nearby houses and shops, just days after US special forces killed bin Laden in Pakistan. "The suicide bomber took advantage of the police station's guards changing shifts to attack," said Haidar al-Zazour, head of the Babil provincial council security committee. "He managed to drive through the main gate and blew up his vehicle four metres (12 feet) inside the station's perimeter." The chief of Hilla's main surgical hospital put the toll from Thursday's suicide bombing at 25 dead and 75 wounded, all policemen. Of the wounded, 30 were in serious condition, the doctor said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The death toll was confirmed by a list of the fatalities posted inside the hospital. Babil provincial council chief Kadhim Majid al-Touman said that the car was packed with 150 kilogrammes (330 pounds) of explosives.