Iraq’s interior minister offers to resign after massive Baghdad bombing

The death toll from two ISIS-claimed bombings in central Baghdad, Iraq Sunday has reached 175, the Associated Press reported, citing unnamed officials.

In response to the battlefield setbacks, the group has hit back against civilians, and experts have warned there may be more bombings as the jihadists continue to lose ground.

And while some of the specifics remain unclear, what is known is that the attack took place on a packed shopping street in Karrada.

The bombing came days before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan and which begins on Wednesday in Iraq.

After the deadly twin bomb blasts, Abadi announced measures to address security flaws in the capital, including scrapping fake detectors, accelerated installing of scanning devices at entrances to Baghdad, and increased aerial reconnaissance and coordination among security forces. At least 185 people were wounded.

An Islamic State suicide bomber struck Baghdad’s bustling commercial area of Karada early on Sunday when many residents were out before the start of the dawn fast.

“We are in a state of war”, Sami said, but “the security can’t focus on the war (against IS) and forget Baghdad”.

In addition to the violence in Baghdad, the final week of Ramadan saw suicide attackers strike near one of Islam’s holiest sites in Saudi Arabia, in an upscale neighborhood of the capital of Bangladesh, and at the worldwide airport in Turkey’s commercial hub of Istanbul.

A witness who lives near the airport heard 20 to 30 explosions that a security source said was a bombardment targeting the secured perimeter of the airport where the camp is located.

ISIS said it would carry out more terror attacks during Ramadan.

Black banners bearing the names of victims – including multiple members of some families – hung from burned buildings, announcing the dates and locations of their funerals.

The Pentagon had cautioned previously that the Islamic State group was likely to conduct these kinds of high-profile attacks as the terrorist group continues to lose territory in Iraq and Syria.

A video posted online showed an angry crowd throwing stones and jerry cans at al-Abadi’s convoy.

Chief among them was the use of fake hand-held “bomb detectors” sold to Iraq by James McCormick, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail in Britain for fraud in connection with the devices in 2013.

Even if the new measures are fully carried out, preventing all bombings in the capital would be extremely hard.

Despite the ban, security personnel were still seen using the wands at checkpoints on Monday.

Interior Minister Mohammed Ghabban called the checkpoints in Baghdad “absolutely useless”, AFP reports, and he submitted his resignation on Tuesday.

The bombing in a mostly Shia Muslim area just after midnight came a week after Iraqi forces had recaptured the city of Falluja from ISIL.

“The wedge was already there, and it’s fairly easy for them to exploit this”, Leighton said.