A string of bombings in mostly Shia-majority cities across Iraq killed at least 31 people and wounded dozens. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the latest attacks, but car bombs are frequently used by Al Qaeda’s Iraq branch. The deadliest attacks, which targeted mainly commercial areas and bus stations, was in the southern city of Hillah, 95 kilometres south of Baghdad. Back-to-back car bombings hit an outdoor market there, killing eight people and wounding 22, a police officer said. Two parked car bombs ripped through a commercial area in the city of Suwayrah, killing five people and wounding 14. Two other car bombs exploded simultaneously in the city of Kut, killing four and wounded 16. In nearby city of Samawah, 370 kilometres southeast of Baghdad, four people were killed and 13 wounded when two car bombs exploded. Two other car bombs killed three and wounded 13 in the city of Diwaniyah. More than 5,000 people have been killed in Iraq since attacks began accelerating in April following a deadly security crackdown against a Sunni protest camp in the northern town of Hawija. With today’s death toll, at least 258 people were killed so far in October. The latest surge in violence has raised fears that Iraq could be returning to widespread sectarian killings similar to those that brought country to the edge of civil war in 2006 and 2007. 1

• 1. “Attacks across Iraq kill at least 31,” Khaleej Times, October 13, 2013, at http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-1.asp?xfile=data/middleea...