10 May 2010 Iraq attacks

10 May 2010 Iraq attacks
Part of Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011)
Location	Baghdad, Mosul, Basra, Fallujah, Iskandariyah, Al Tarmia, Suwayrah, Samarra. Iraq
Date	10 May 2010 (UTC+4)
Target	various
Attack type	coordinated bomb detonations, suicide car bombings, targeted killings, shootings
Deaths	114+
Injured	350+
Perpetrators	Unknown

The 10 May 2010 Iraq attacks were a series of bomb and shooting attacks that occurred in Iraq on 10 May 2010, killing over 114 people and injuring 350, the highest death toll for a single day in Iraq in 2010.^[1]

Background

Following the inconclusive 2010 Iraqi elections, these attacks were believed to be an attempt to further destabilise Iraq. Major General Qassim al-Moussawi, an Iraqi Army spokesman, gave a statement on 10 May in which he said "Al-Qaeda is trying to ... use some gaps created by some political problems".^[2]

According to official statistics, violent deaths in Iraq decreased slightly in April 2010 compared with April 2009.^[1]

Attacks

There were at least twenty attacks,^[2] of which the worst, by death toll, was a series of three or four suicide car bombs at the 'State Company for Textile Industries' in Al Hillah in central Iraq, approximately 100 km (62 mi) from the capital, Baghdad. The first two bombs were in quick succession at about 1:30 pm (10:30 UTC), followed minutes later by a third. A fourth car bomb targeted the crowd and emergency services at the scene, according to police Captain Ali al-Shimmari.^[3] The bombs killed a total of 45 people, leaving 140 wounded.

Fallujah, which had previously seen intense battles between insurgents and American troops was targeted with at least two deaths resulting from bomb blasts. There were also attacks in Iskandariya, Mosul, Samarra and Al Tarmia (Tarmiyah).^[1][4]

There were multiple shootings across the country, particularly at checkpoints in Baghdad. According to officials, as Baghdad's nightly curfew lifted at 05:00 local time, gunmen disguised as municipal street cleaners attacked 10 police and army checkpoints across the city, killing as many as 9 soldiers and officers, and wounding 24.^[4]

Responsibility

While no organization claimed responsibility, Iraqi officials alleged that Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) group carried out the attacks in retaliation against the killing of ISI's two high-ranking leaders of U.S. and Iraqi forces.^[5]

See also

• Terrorist incidents in Iraq in 2010

References

1. "At least 100 killed in Iraqi violence". BBC News. BBC. 10 May 2010. Archived from the original on 13 May 2010. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
2. August, Oliver (11 May 2010). "102 dead as bombers fill power vacuum caused by Iraqi election". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 28 May 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
3. Abbas al-Ani (10 May 2010). "102 killed in Iraq's bloodiest day this year". Agence France-Presse. Archived from the original on 13 May 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
4. Myers, Steven Lee (10 May 2009). "Coordinated Attacks in Iraqi Cities Kill More Than 100". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 14 May 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
5. "Al-Qaeda in Iraq blamed for attacks". Al Jazeera. 11 May 2010. Archived from the original on 14 May 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2010.

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