117 Iraqis Killed in Two Days of Attacks on Pilgrims

Nearly 500 Wounded as Bombings Tear Through Baghdad

The hopes that the rising violence seen throughout 2010 was starting to subside after a comparatively calm June seem to be subsiding tonight, after two days of attacks on Shi’ite pilgrims in the capital city have left 117 Iraqis killed and nearly 500 wounded.

The pilgrimage, a comparatively small one for Iraq’s Shi’ite majority, saw hundreds of thousands take to the streets of Baghdad, as the government attempted to provide security with a blanket ban on bicycles and push carts.

The attacks, however, continued unabated, with suicide bombers attacking crowds of pilgrims on foot and a large number of roadside bombs detonated along the areas most traversed by the worshippers.

The pilgrimage ended earlier today, and the Shi’ites have headed home. The lingering effects of the violence on an already tense sectarian situation in the capital city, however, will probably be felt for months and even years to come.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.