Suicide bomber kills 35 at Baghdad shrine

By Waleed Ibrahim and Aseel Kami

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber infiltrated a crowd of Shi'ite pilgrims and blew himself up, killing at least 35 people and wounding at least 79 at a Shi'ite shrine in Baghdad on Sunday, Iraqi officials said.

The bomber struck a checkpoint outside the Imam Moussa al-Kadhim shrine in Kadhimiya, a mainly Shi'ite area of Baghdad, as Shi'ites prepared for the Ashura holiday this week to mourn the death of Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammad.

Many of the casualties were pilgrims from Iran, security spokesman Major-General Qassim Moussawi said, underscoring the religious ties between the two majority Shi'ite countries.

Moussawi had earlier said the bomber was female but later said an investigation of the scene concluded it was a man. He said 35 people were killed and 79 wounded. Other Iraqi security sources gave slightly higher casualty figures.

"There were bodies everywhere, some of them missing legs and arms. This is a disaster," said eyewitness Said Qassim, who was distributing food to pilgrims nearby at the time of the blast.

"I can't understand how ... No one can get in here without going through seven checkpoints," he said.

A Shi'ite cleric called on Iraqi security forces to be "more awake" and for the planners of the bombing to be punished.

"The Iraqi people will not bow down to such crimes. We'll teach those people who did this unforgettable lessons," Mohammed Taqi al-Mudarisi said in a statement from his office in the holy Shi'ite city of Najaf.