Syndicate chief wounded in Baghdad blast

BAGHDAD, Sept. 20 (Iraqi News) – The chief of the Iraqi press syndicate was wounded in the blast that occurred earlier today at the entrance of the syndicate building in northern Baghdad, an official source said on Saturday. “An improvised explosive device (IED) planted by unknown men at the entrance of the press syndicate building in Baghdad’s northern area of al-Waziriya detonated at 11:00 a.m. during a syndicate board meeting, slightly wounding a number of civilians, including the syndicate chief, Muayyad al-Lami,” the source, who preferred to remain unnamed, told IraqiNews.com – Voices of Iraq – (Iraqi News). “The explosion caused damage to three cars and totally destroyed four others, all belonging to syndicate employees,” the source noted. 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 8 th 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).   SS (S) 1