Kurdistan RegionG, presidency denounce Shiite mosque bombing

ARBIL / IraqiNews.com: The government and presidency of the Kurdistan region on Sunday condemned the blast that targeted a Shiite mosque near Kirkuk and left scores of persons killed or wounded. “We condemn and denounce the terrorist attack that targeted Taza district on June 20, 2009, where terrorists once again attacked the district’s mosque and left dozens of people, mostly Turkmen, killed or wounded,” a statement released by the region’s presidency quoted President Massoud al-Barazani as saying. Yesterday (June 21), a senior security official said that casualties from the blast that occurred in front of al-Rasoul Mosque in Taza district (30 km south of Kirkuk city) reached 67 dead and 200 wounded persons. The blast occurred while worshipers were leaving the mosque. The attack was the second to hit the province within hours. Earlier yesterday, an improvised explosive device (IED) targeted the convoy of Col. Abdullah Qadir, a police director in Kirkuk, wounding two civilians. Barazani described the attack as an attempt to “undermine peaceful coexistence among the different Iraqi constituents.” Kirkuk, an oil-rich and mixed city of Kurds, Turkmen, Christians, and Arabs, lies 250 km northeast of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. SS (S)/SR 1