Baghdad, Aug 19 (Xinhua) The toll in two deadly truck bomb attacks in the Iraqi capital Wednesday has risen to 75, the interior ministry said.
More than 300 people were injured in the explosions near the seat of the government in Baghdad, reports said.
“The latest reports said 75 people were killed and 310 others wounded in the two truck bomb attacks,” an official of the ministry told Xinhua requesting anonymity.
The first blast took place just before midday under a bridge close to the Iraqi finance ministry in Waziriyah district. The blast brought down a large portion of the bridge.
Television footage showed the 10-storey building of the ministry was badly damaged in the explosion. It also showed charred remains of dozens of cars at the site.
Firefighters have rushed to the site to put out the fire that started after the blast.
The second blast occurred near the foreign ministry, just two minutes after the first explosion. An explosives-filled truck was detonated near a parking stand close to the ministry.
The powerful explosion damaged the foreign ministry building as well as the adjacent parliament building. The blast left a three-meter deep carter, the official said.
The Iraqi security forces and the rescue teams at the site were trying to retrieve the bodies scattered across the blast site.
The roof of the Rasheed Theater building, some 500 metres from the foreign ministry, collapsed in the impact of the explosion, the official added.
