Car bomb in Baghdad kills 2, wounds 7 Shiite militia

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A car bomb went off in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Sunday, killing two Shiite militiamen and wounding seven.

"A car bomb in the area of Tefiiya in the southern part of Baghdad went off. According to early information, nine people were killed and wounded," said a Rudaw reporter from Baghdad.

The reporter added that the car bomb targeted a meeting of Shiite Hashd al-Shaabi militants.

Two militiamen were killed and seven others wounded, the reporter added.

The citizens of Baghdad are no strangers to violence, where suicide attacks and explosions are sadly common occurrences. But recently, the frequency of attacks has risen dramatically.

A car bomb in Baghdad killed at least 60 people in a busy bazaar in the capital’s Shiite Sadr neighborhood on Wednesday. On Thursday, at least two policemen were killed and eight wounded in attacks on two police stations near Baghdad. Earlier on Sunday, ISIS attacked a gas plant north of the city.

Suicide attacks and car bombings have increased in Baghdad since the recent political tumult in the capital, which saw angry protesters storm the parliament building late last month, demanding substantial political reforms to uproot corruption.

Authorities blame the Islamic State group (ISIS) for these attacks. Combining car bombs with suicide attackers is a preferred tactic of the militant group. The group routinely targets Shiites, militiamen and civilians alike.

On Saturday, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said that the political crisis has impacted the security forces’ ability to function, therefore giving terrorists space to carry out attacks.