Car bomb kills Shia pilgrims south of Baghdad Iraq

[Anthea]

BBC NEWS Middle East

A car bomb has killed at least 15 Shia Muslim pilgrims and injured 30 in the Iraqi town of Musayyib, south of the capital Baghdad, officials say.

The device exploded in a car park at 17:00 (14:00 GMT) as pilgrims returned from the holy city of Karbala, AFP news agency reports.

According to Reuters news agency, a suicide attacker set off the bomb.

Shia pilgrims, who have been frequently targeted in Iraq, are observing the festival of Arbaeen.

The bomb went off close to a bus stop where coaches that carry pilgrims from Karbala to other Iraqi cities drop and collect them, police told BBC News.

Bombs killed seven people in Musayyib on Monday.

The violence in the south comes as the government faces multiple crises, including a protest movement in western Iraq, and a dispute over oil and territory between Baghdad and the autonomous Kurdish region in the north.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20903500