Bomb explosion leaves 7 casualties in Baghdad

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: A civilian was killed and six others were wounded on Thursday in a bomb blast in southeastern Baghdad, a police source said. “The bomb went off inside a small bus on Mohamed al-Qassem street in southeastern Baghdad, killing a civilian and injuring six,” the source told IraqiNews.com. Baghdad is the capital of Iraq and Baghdad province. With a municipal population estimated at 7,000,000, it is the largest city in Iraq. It is the second largest city in the Arab world (after Cairo) and the second largest city in southwest Asia (after Tehran). Located on the Tigris River, the city dates back to at least the 8th century, and probably to pre-Islamic times. Once the center of Dar al-Islam (the abode of Islam), Baghdad has been a center of violent conflict since 2003 because of the ongoing Iraq war. Baghdad’s population is a mix of Sunnis and Shiites. It is mainly divided into two sides: the west (al-Karkh) and the east (al-Rasafa). SH (P) 1