- BAGHDAD (AFP) -- Nine people
were killed, including four foreigners, and 10 wounded when a vehicle was
targeted in a blast in the restive town of Ramadi, western Iraq, an Iraqi
doctor told AFP.
-
- "We have the bodies of five Iraqis and four foreigners,"
said Mohammed Jalal, a doctor in the neighboring town of Fallujah, 50 kilometres
(30 miles) west of Baghdad. "In addition, 10 injured Iraqis were admitted
to our hospital."
-
- The doctor, speaking to AFP by telephone on Wednesday,
was unable to determine the nationality of the dead foreigners.
-
- Citing the local rescue services, he added that the four
had been travelling in an all-terrain vehicle, typically favoured by the
US-led coalition in Iraq, which was badly damaged in the explosion.
-
- The US military said a blast took place in eastern Ramadi
at around 8:45 am (0445 GMT) but added that, according to initial reports,
only five Iraqis were injured and there were no coalition casualties.
-
- It was unclear whether the two reports were about the
same attack.
-
- US marines arrested six members of the Iraqi Civil Defence
Corps on suspicion of involvement in the bombing along with an Iraqi civilian
who ran out of a nearby building after the blast carrying hand grenades,
a military spokeswoman said. The seven were taken to a coalition base for
questioning.
-
- The military spokeswoman said the device was contained
in a fuel drum, which sprayed burning fuel and oil on several nearby cars
when it exploded.
-
- A witness, also contacted by telephone, said an explosion
took place at 9:30 am (0530 GMT) in front of a mosque in the centre of
Ramadi.
-
- "After hearing the explosion we ran to the site
and saw corpses and injured people," said merchant Mohammed Jabr.
-
- Jabr said the explosion was caused by a roadside bomb,
adding that security services soon arrived at the scene to deal with the
casualties.
-
- A second witness, Samir Hammadi, said he believed the
bomb had been placed amongst oil cans that were being sold on the roadside.
-
- Ramadi, near the rebel bastion of Fallujah, has been
a hotbed of insurgency against the US-led coalition.
-
- During heavy clashes against marines in April, some troops
from the US-formed ICDC defected to join the rebels in their fight.
-
- The attack came just two days after a suicide car bombing
on a coalition convoy in Baghdad killed 13 people, including five foreigners,
and wounded 69.
-
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