ISIS Suicide Bomber Hits Baghdad, Dozens Dead
A suicide bomber working for the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has struck outside Baghdad, killing scores of individuals near the Iraqi capital city on Sunday, March 6.
The Associated Press said ISIS has claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing, the third to strike near Baghdad in a week appearing “to be part of a campaign by ISIS to stage attacks deep behind front lines in order to wreak havoc and force the government to overextend its forces.”
“ISIS has carried out scores of suicide bombings against security forces and the country’s Shiite majority. Hillah is in the country’s mainly Shiite south, far from the front lines of the war against ISIS.
“Among the dead were 39 civilians, while the rest were members of the security forces. The attacker struck shortly after noon when the checkpoint was crowded with dozens of cars, a police officer said. He added that up to 65 other people were wounded.
“A medical official confirmed the causality figures. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to release information.”
A report from the Huffington Post noted a death toll as high as 70 and said it was the second deadly attack since February 28.
While much of the Baghdad region of Iraq is rightfully worried about mass-casualty events that have seen a spike in recent months, ISIS appears to also be keeping up its reign of terror beyond suicide bombings and other large scale events.
The Jerusalem Post reported that a 16-year-old boy was murdered by the terrorist group recently for skipping Friday prayers while he hid out in a relative’s home near the Turkish-Syrian border.
“‘The boy who was arrested was charged with heresy, the most serious charge in the ISIS legal system,’ Nasar Taljabini, a resident of Jarabulus, told the Kurdish news outlet.
“Taljabini added that the boy ‘was given a short trial that lasted only a few minutes, and was then led away to the town square where he was beheaded in front of a large audience who had gathered to watch the execution.'”
Prior to the execution, the Post reported that a warning came over the loud speaker letting residents know that others missing Friday prayers could expect to be killed in the same manner as the 16-year-old boy.
Reports like those coming out of Iraq and the Turkish-Syrian border region are likely what Donald Trump was referring to at a press conference Saturday night where the candidate said he favored “beating” terror suspects held by American authorities. The candidate for the Republican presidential nomination has time and again called for increased pressure on terror suspects but appeared to lighten up his positions during recent appearances.
The remarks on Saturday were a hardening of his position. He continued the hardened position in an appearance on CBS Sunday morning, according to the New York Post.
“I think we are weak. We cannot beat ISIS. We should beat ISIS very quickly. General Patton would have had ISIS down in about three days,” Trump said, adding that Americans should “beat the savages.”
“We have to play the game the way they’re playing the game. You’re not going to win if we’re soft and they’re, they have no rules. Now, I want to stay within the laws. I want to do all of that, but I think we have to increase the laws because the laws are not working.”
What do you think? Should the United States torture terror suspects as Trump suggests? Do events like Sunday’s bombing near Baghdad and the recent beheading of a child near the Turkish-Syrian border influence your decision? Let us know in the comments section.
