Dozens Killed in ISIS Attacks on a Sacred Shiite Site in Iraq

At least 35 people have been killed in suicide bombings and shootings by militants from the group known as the 'Islamic State' at the shrine of 'Seyed Mohammad' in the city of Balad in Samarra. Reports indicate that at least 60 others have been injured in this attack. The recent assault comes just days after the deadliest explosion in Iraq in the Karrada neighborhood, which resulted in the deaths of over 290 people; the death toll has continued to rise in recent days. According to a statement from the Iraqi Joint Operations Command, the attack on the morning of Friday, July 18, began with mortar fire. The attackers then reached the shrine and opened fire. Two of the attackers detonated themselves in a store near the site, while a third was killed and his explosives were defused. The statement did not clarify which group or individual killed the third attacker. The IRNA news agency, citing security sources in the area, reported that three suicide attacks were carried out and 'two other bombers were arrested and their belts were defused.' The news agency stated that the Hashd al-Shaabi forces, predominantly Shiite militias supported by Iran, have headed to the area. Reports of the presence of militia forces in Balad and the arrest of two attackers have also been shared on social media accounts close to 'Hashd.' Reuters reported that Muqtada al-Sadr has sent his militia to secure the Seyed Mohammad shrine. The attack in Balad comes after the death toll from the deadliest explosion in 13 years in Iraq, in the Karrada neighborhood of Baghdad, reached 292. Balad is located 90 kilometers north of the capital, and the recent attack occurred less than a week after a car bomb explosion in Karrada. The new deadly attacks come at a time when Iraqi security forces have successfully retaken the city of Fallujah from self-proclaimed Islamic State militants. Special police and army forces, as well as government-backed militias, are preparing to retake Mosul, the most important city in the country currently under ISIS control. In this context, AWACS aircraft are being dispatched to the battlefield against 'ISIS.' The number of casualties from the Karrada explosion has increased; 'the explosive vehicle came from Diyala.' The casualties from the 'deadliest' suicide bombing since the fall of Saddam in Baghdad have reached 292.