BAGHDAD — Terrorists on Thursday targeted Shiite Muslim pilgrims at the gates of Karbala, one of Iraq’s most sacred cities, killing dozens and wounding hundreds.
Hospital officials said 63 people were killed and more than 200 wounded in explosions at security checkpoints near the entrances to the city, home of a shrine to the Imam Hussein, one of the most revered figures in Shiite Islam.
It was the deadliest attack in Iraq in several months, raising the death toll in three consecutive days of major bombings to more than 140 and continuing to shatter weeks of relative calm.
In separate attacks, terrorists struck Shiite pilgrims and a police headquarters in Diyala province, north of Baghdad, killing at least five. On Wednesday, a suicide bomber drove a car rigged with explosives into a government building in Diyala, killing 15 people and wounding 55, according to police.
The spate of attacks, which began Tuesday with a suicide bombing that killed 60 people outside a police recruitment center in Tikrit, north of Baghdad, mark the first major spike in violence since Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki unveiled a new government in December.
No group has claimed responsibility for this week’s killings, but many Iraqis suspect the Sunni-led Islamic State of Iraq, an al-Qaeda affiliate that has frequently targeted Shiites and government centers.
U.S. military officials say Iraqi security forces have severely weakened the terrorist group in recent months.
