Blast at Iraq Restaurant Kills 47

[tekisui]

Source: BBC News

A suspected suicide bomber has killed at least 47 people at a restaurant near the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, police say.

Around 102 people were injured in the explosion at the Kurdish restaurant, some 5km (three miles) north of the city, police told the BBC.

The reason for the attack is not yet clear but Kirkuk is home to a mix of Kurds, Arabs and Turkmens.

The blast came as Muslims celebrated the Eid-al-Adha holiday.

Families were eating lunch in the Abdullah restaurant, located on the main road to Irbil, when it happened.

A suicide bomber activated an explosives belt in the middle of the restaurant, officials and at least one witness say, although one interior ministry official was quoted as saying a car bomb was the cause.

There were also unconfirmed reports that Kurdish officials were also in the restaurant having lunch with Arab tribal leaders at the time.

A branch of the same restaurant in Kirkuk was itself hit by a car bomb last year, with 25 people killed.

more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7777342.stm

[islandmkl]

1. more signs that things are 'going well' in iraq...

where's m.c.johnny with this two sidekicks telling the world how much progress 'the surge' has made?

[tekisui]

2. Washington Post says 55 dead.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/12/11/ST2008121101562.html