IRAQ: Baquba Pipeline blast kills 15; Gunmen kill two and wound five at al-Sadr office north of Baghdad

An explosion killed at least 15 people in central Iraq late on Monday (August 28). They were siphoning petrol from pools formed around a breach in a disused fuel pipeline at a rural site near Diwaniya, 180 km (110 miles) south of Baghdad. Unconfirmed police reports claimed the death count had reached 50. A hospital official said eight bodies had been brought to Diwaniya's morgue and a Reuters' reporter counted 15 charred bodies, including that of a boy, at the scene of the blast. More bodies are believed to still be at the bottom of the pools. Witnesses said the blast occurred at 11 p.m. (1900 GMT), while a large group of people were scooping fuel from two large pools. Officials are still investigating the cause of the blast. A fuel crisis is gripping the oil-rich country due to sabotage and crumbling infrastructure. Fuel prices have soared as the Iraqi government phases out subsidies under a deal with the International Monetary Fund. Many Iraqis are desperate for petrol and oil smuggling is rife. An Oil Ministry official in Baghdad said the pipe was one of many across the country that are out of operation due to the shortages. He explained that residue left in the pipe could have caused the blast. The explosion did not appear connected to the violence in Diwaniya on Monday (August 28), when at least 20 Iraqi soldiers were killed in street fighting with Shi'ite militiamen. Meanwhile, gunmen attacked the office of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in the town of Baquba 65km (40 miles) north of Baghdad early on Tuesday (August 29), killing two employees and wounding five other people. Police reported that gunmen attacked the office with heavy machines, RPGs and grenades, causing severe damage to the building.

ITN Source | August 29, 2006

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