Two Suicide Bombings in Baghdad Leave at Least 25 Dead

During two separate suicide bombings in eastern and northern Baghdad on Thursday, at least 25 people were killed and 70 others injured. Immediately after the explosions, the Islamic State group, whose positions in central Fallujah are besieged by Iraqi security forces, claimed responsibility. According to Reuters, members of the Islamic State stated that one of the explosions was caused by a vehicle carrying explosives and the other by a suicide belt. A police officer also told Reuters that a vehicle carrying explosives targeted a commercial street in Baghdad called Baghdad al-Jadida (in the east of the capital), resulting in 17 deaths and over 50 injuries. Additionally, a man detonated a suicide belt at a checkpoint near the Taji military base in the north of the capital, killing seven soldiers and injuring more than 20. The Islamic State, in a statement published online, claimed that the explosion on Baghdad al-Jadida targeted previously identified Shia military members. The Associated Press reported the death toll from the two explosions as 27. Iraqi security forces have launched extensive attacks on Islamic State positions in Fallujah (65 kilometers west of Baghdad) since June 24, following bloody explosions orchestrated by the Islamic State in Shia neighborhoods of Baghdad. Fallujah is a historic stronghold of Sunni insurgents. This area once became a stronghold for Sunni insurgents after the arrival of American forces in 2003 and later became a battleground against the Shia-led government that took control of Iraq. Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq's finance minister, stated last week that the reconstruction of Fallujah would be lengthy and costly, as the Islamic State has dug dozens of tunnels in the area and planted bombs in homes and roads to hinder the entry of Iraqi security forces into Fallujah. Many analysts on Iraq say that the Islamic State conducts small explosions in the capital to create chaos and divert the attention of security forces from the front lines of the war.