Looks like the election campaign in Iraq has started in earnest – and to start it all off :
At least seven people have been killed and 30 injured in a bomb explosion in Iraq’s holy city of Karbala. The blast at the gate to a major Shia shrine, the Imam Hussein mausoleum, was the first serious attack in the city for several months. An aide to Iraq’s most senior Shia cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, was said to be among the wounded. It came as campaigning for elections in January began and interim PM Iyad Allawi declared his candidacy.
Considering that Sistani’s aide was wounded, it might have been Sunni terrorists at work here. More attacks, perhaps even ‘spectacular’ attacks are likely in the run up to election day. In relation to Dick’s recent post, any thoughts on where Iraq will be one year from now?