29 Killed In Iraq Soccer Stadium Suicide Bombing; Officials Say ISIS Claims Responsibility
ISKANDERIYAH, Iraq (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Just three days after the Brussels attacks, a suicide bomber blew himself up in a soccer stadium south of the Iraqi capital on Friday, killing 29 people and wounding 60.
The bombing took place during a match in the small stadium in the city of Iskanderiyah, 30 miles from Baghdad, the officials said. Investigators said a man wearing a suicide belt walked into the stadium and blew himself up.
Medical officials confirmed the death toll.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press.
Investigators late Friday said ISIS had already claimed responsibility. ISIS has been waging a campaign of suicide bombings in and around the capital as Iraqi forces and their allies battle the militants in the north and west of the country.
The bombing came as Iraqi military spokesman Yahya Rusoul announced that Iraqi troops and Sunni tribal fighters recaptured the western town of Kubeisa from ISIS. The assault was part of operations aimed at rolling back the militants in Iraq's Sunni-majority Anbar province after government forces retook the provincial capital of Ramadi in February.
On Thursday, the Iraqi military backed by U.S.-led coalition aircraft launched a long-awaited operation to recapture the northern city of Mosul from ISIS militants.
The attack in Iraq came three days after bombs went off at the Brussels Airport at Zaventem and a metro station in the Belgian capital, leaving dozens dead and more than 100 injured in the Belgian capital.
