Jump to content

2008 Balad bombing

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
2008 Balad bombing
LocationBalad, Iraq
DateFebruary 10, 2008
1630 (1330 GMT) (UTC+3)
Attack type
car bomb
Deaths25-33 (reports vary)
Injured40+
PerpetratorsUnknown

The 2008 Balad bombing occurred on February 10, 2008 when a car bomb detonated in a market in Balad, Iraq, at a strategic Iraqi Army checkpoint.[1] It killed at least 25 and injuring 40 more, though some estimates place the death toll at 33.[1] Some buildings have collapsed and several people have been reported missing, adding to the possible death toll.[1]

Among the dead are a driver and Iraqi journalist Alaa Abdulkareem Fartusi, a cameraman for Al-Forat, a Shiite-backed satellite news station.[2] Fartusi marks the first journalist killed in Iraq in 2008.[2] A female reporter was injured in the blast and remains in critical condition.[2]

The bombing was on the same day that U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Baghdad unannounced to meet Iraqi government leaders and U.S. commanders, including General David Petraeus.[1][3]

This is the second bomb attack on Balad. The first was on September 29, 2005 when 95 people were killed.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d "Iraq town hit by deadly car bomb". 2008-02-10. Archived from the original on 2023-03-19. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
  2. ^ a b c Parker, Ned (2009-01-31). "Iraq's Sunnis turn toward the ballot". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2021-10-25. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
  3. ^ "Suicide bomber kills 25 in Iraqi market - CNN.com". www.cnn.com. Archived from the original on 2021-11-30. Retrieved 2023-05-09.