Iraq suicide bomb kills at least 13

A suicide bomber today killed at least 13 people outside an Iraqi government compound in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar, once a stronghold of Sunni insurgents.

The attack comes weeks before Iraq’s March 7 general election, which Islamist militants have threatened to derail through violence, stoking fears that more bloodshed will follow.

The attacker blew up his explosive-packed car outside the gate of a complex housing the governor’s office, police headquarters and courts, a security official said. The blast also wounded at least 20 people.

A restaurant worker said that bodies littered the scene.

A suicide bomber “attacked the checkpoint of the police and army close to our restaurant. Some of them were killed. I saw around five or six bodies, and helped carry them to cars going to hospital,” Hamid Ali said.

The government compound in Ramadi was once the scene of daily attacks during the height of the insurgency in 2005 and 2006, before many former insurgents – paid by the US military – began to turn against al-Qaida. Their decision to ally with the US was seen as one of the key reasons for an abatement of violence.

Insurgent attacks continue, however, and may even be on the rise. In December twin bombings in Ramadi killed 23 people and badly wounded the governor.

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