Document #1021214
RFE/RL – Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (Author)
September 10, 2014
Three car bombs exploded in a Shi’ite neighborhood of eastern Baghdad on September 10, killing at least nine people and wounding 29.
The explosions occurred minutes apart near markets in the New Baghdad neighborhood.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
The blasts come two days after parliament confirmed the Shi'ite politician Haider al-Abadi as Iraq’s Prime Minister with a program aimed at bridging sectarian divisions and unifying Iraqis in the fight against Islamic State militants.
In particular, sectarian tensions between Sunni Arabs and Shi’a have been on the rise for years -- with Sunnis accusing former Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki’s Shi’te-dominated government of marginalizing their community.
Kurdish regional leaders also have had disagreements with authorities in Baghdad, but have said they would give Abadi’s new government three months to resolve their disputes.
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