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BAGHDAD – A car bomb exploded Friday at an open-air market crowded with shoppers in a Shiite town northeast of Baghdad, killing 23 people and wounding more than 50, Iraqi police and hospital officials said.The bombing struck the town of Khalis, a Shiite enclave 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Baghdad surrounded by the largely Sunni province of Diyala. It is a former al-Qaida in Iraq stronghold that has seen several powerful blasts, one a twin bombing on a restaurant in March that killed 57.Most of those killed Friday were sitting in a cafe in the center of the market that was reduced to rubble."There was a sudden explosion followed by heavy shooting with smoke, fire and yelling, then sirens, ambulances, police," said Yasser Mohammed, a 28-year-old blacksmith who walked by the cafe minutes before the blast."There was a frightening scene, mostly women running to the scene I assume to look for their husbands or sons who go to the cafe to play dominos, backgammon, or poker"...Car bomb in Shiite town near Baghdad kills 23
BAGHDAD – A car bomb exploded Friday at an open-air market crowded with shoppers in a Shiite town northeast of Baghdad, killing 23 people and wounding more than 50, Iraqi police and hospital officials said.The bombing struck the town of Khalis, a Shiite enclave 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Baghdad surrounded by the largely Sunni province of Diyala. It is a former al-Qaida in Iraq stronghold that has seen several powerful blasts, one a twin bombing on a restaurant in March that killed 57.Most of those killed Friday were sitting in a cafe in the center of the market that was reduced to rubble."There was a sudden explosion followed by heavy shooting with smoke, fire and yelling, then sirens, ambulances, police," said Yasser Mohammed, a 28-year-old blacksmith who walked by the cafe minutes before the blast."There was a frightening scene, mostly women running to the scene I assume to look for their husbands or sons who go to the cafe to play dominos, backgammon, or poker"...
