Iraq: Car bomb attack kills 13 in Baghdad

By Ibrahim Saleh

BAGHDAD

At least 13 people were killed and 16 others injured Monday evening a car laden with explosives went off in a crowded shopping area in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, according to a police officer.

"The explosion was caused by a car bomb left by unknown people at the 84th street in southern Baghdad, which is packed with markets,” police officer Hatem al-Jabri told Anadolu Agency.

"The bombing caused the death of at least 13 people and 16 others injured,” he said.

“The bodies of victims and the injured were transferred to the nearby hospitals," he said. No group has yet to claim responsibility for the attacks.

In recent months, bomb attacks -- often featuring explosive-laden vehicles -- have become commonplace in Iraq’s violence-prone capital.

The Iraqi authorities typically blame such attacks, which frequently target civilian areas, on the Daesh terrorist group, which captured large swathes of territory in northern and western Iraq in 2014.