The death toll from Baghdad's Friday bombings at pet markets rose to 98 and some 130 people were wounded, an Interior Ministry source said on Saturday.
"The latest death toll from both deadly attack at pet markets yesterday rose to 98 people and 130 were wounded after some wounded people in critical condition died during the past hours," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.
On Friday, the police said that 65 were killed and 150 others were wounded when two female suicide bombers blew themselves up in two crowded pet markets in central and southern Baghdad.
The first explosion was carried out by a female suicide bomber who blew up herself among crowds at the popular al-Ghazil market in central Baghdad in the morning, a ministry source said.
The market has seen several bomb strikes over the past year with the latest leaving 13 dead and 57 injured on Nov. 23.
Explosives were hidden in a box used for carrying birds in that attack, which also took place Friday, the only day the market is open. Twenty minutes later, a second explosion caused by a hidden bomb in a box containing birds ripped through another pet market in the predominantly Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad al-Jadida southern Baghdad, the source said.
An Iraqi security spokesman, however, blamed the incident on two mentally retarded women attackers.
Major-General Qassim Moussawi, spokesman for the Baghdad security plan, said mobile phones were found on the sites and it was believed that the explosives strapped on the two mentally retarded women were detonated by remote control.
Friday's bombings were the most gruesome for months in the capital city and served as a stark reminder that spectacular bloodshed remains possible despite a recent lull. For its part, the U.S. military lashed out against the blasts at two pet markets in Baghdad, describing them as "barbaric attacks."
"We condemn the brutal enemy responsible for these attacks. This indiscriminate violence, targeting families enjoying themselves on the holiday, again shows the nature of this barbaric enemy," the U.S. military said in a statement.
However, officers of the U.S. military in Iraq have warned that al-Qaida is still capable of waging large-scale attacks.
Source: Xinhua
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