Still reeling from Sunday’s bombings in Baghdad, the deadliest in two years, the Iraqi government is arresting security officials en masse, with at least 61 officials already captured according to authorities.
50 of the officials are members of the civilian government, while the other 11 are officers in the Iraqi Army. Officials said they had not yet ascertained if the officials were negligent in the attacks or had deliberately helped the Sunni militant group that carried out the bombings, which left 160 dead and around 700 others wounded.
Baghdad’s governor pointed to serious concerns he had about the nature of the attacks, noting that the two trucks full of explosives passed through checkpoints unsearched and entered the area around the attacked ministries, where trucks are banned, without any scrutiny from security forces.
The Iraqi government arrested 11 officials in August following similar bombings in Baghdad. Officials say they can’t rule out making more arrests of security personnel related to Sunday’s bombings.