Iraq deadliest car bombing kills 106 civilians and wounds 130

Baghdad (AsiaNews/Agencies) - A suicide car bomb attack on a crowd of people in the town of Hilla, 60 miles south of Baghdad, killed 106 people and wounded 130. The car, reportedly driven by a suicide bomber, exploded near a queue of people applying for government jobs.

The victims of the attack had gathered at a medical centre to receive medical certificates required for state jobs, a police spokesman said.  Some of the casualties are also thought to have been at crowded market nearby.

Witnesses reported seeing dozens of bodies lying on the ground after the blast. The toll makes the blast the single deadliest attack since the fall of Saddam Hussein in April 2003

Iraqi insurgents are waging a violent campaign against US-backed authorities, targeting anyone associated with the government.

The bombing comes as Iraqi groups are holding talks over forming a new, Shia-dominated government following last month's general elections.

Hilla is a mainly Shia town, and Sunni militants have been openly striking at Shia targets in an attempt to stir up sectarian strife.

• iraq
• terrorism
• elections
• islam
• shia
• sunni