IRAQ: Four bomb blasts rock Karbala, killing at least 10

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REPORTING FROM BAGHDAD -- Four bomb blasts rocked Karbala on Sunday, killing at least 10 people less than two weeks after 22 pilgrims from the Shiite holy city were shot dead in a bus hijacking in remote western Iraq

The explosions Sunday took place in an area of Karbala close to an Iraqi government building where ID cards are issued. The attacks, in which at least 95 people were injured, occurred during rush hour.

Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, a Shiite, called the bombings ‘gruesome’ and promised a thorough investigation. ‘We will hit firmly anyone standing behind this crime and the previous crime,’ he said in a statement issued by his media office.

A cabinet-level delegation was dispatched by Maliki to Karbala, south of Baghdad, to inspect the crime scene and offer condolences and assistance to the families of victims.

Sunday’s carnage, the latest in a series of deadly attacks across Iraq, harken back to the deadly days of civil warfare five years ago between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. They also underscore the increasing dangers faced by Iraqi officials as the U.S. winds down its deployment of troops in Iraq.

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-- Raheem Salman