The 20 June 2009 Taza bombing was an attack which took place in
Taza
Taza ( ber, ⵜⴰⵣⴰ, ar, تازة) is a city in northern Morocco occupying the corridor between the Rif mountains and Middle Atlas mountains, about 120 km east of Fez and 150 km west of Al hoceima. It recorded a population of 148 ...
near
Kirkuk
Kirkuk ( ar, كركوك, ku, کەرکووک, translit=Kerkûk, , tr, Kerkük) is a city in Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate, located north of Baghdad. The city is home to a diverse population of Turkmens, Arabs, Kurds, ...
,
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
on 20 June 2009 in a dominant
Shia
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
Turkmen
Turkmen, Türkmen, Turkoman, or Turkman may refer to:
Peoples Historical ethnonym
* Turkoman (ethnonym), ethnonym used for the Oghuz Turks during the Middle Ages
Ethnic groups
* Turkmen in Anatolia and the Levant (Seljuk and Ottoman-Turkish desc ...
community. At least 73 people
were killed and over 200 more were injured.
Thirty homes were destroyed in the bombing.
The bombing was the worst attack in Iraq since March 2008,
even worse than the twin
23 April 2009 Iraqi suicide attacks
The 23 April 2009 Iraqi suicide attacks were two separate suicide attacks which occurred in Baghdad and Muqdadiyah, Iraq, on 23 April 2009. At least seventy-six people are known to have died in the attacks, including several Iranian pilgrims. The ...
in
Baghdad
Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...
and
Muqdadiyah
Miqdadiyah ( ar, المقدادية; ku, Şareban, شارهبان) is a city in the Diyala Governorate of Iraq. Its population is a mix of Arabs, Turkmens and Kurds. The city is located about 80 km (50 mi) northeast of Baghdad and 30  ...
.
Incident
The attack took place in a residential area near a mosque, as a result destroying several homes and slightly damaging the mosque.
Mud-brick homes in the vicinity of the explosion collapsed,
with the explosion leaving a deep crater at the point of detonation.
Following midday prayers, people were exiting the crowded
Al-Rasoul mosque in Taza town when the explosion occurred.
Those who were affected were removed to
Azadi Hospital in
Kirkuk
Kirkuk ( ar, كركوك, ku, کەرکووک, translit=Kerkûk, , tr, Kerkük) is a city in Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate, located north of Baghdad. The city is home to a diverse population of Turkmens, Arabs, Kurds, ...
, with children being placed in wards.
Thirty-five-year-old Hussain Nashaat was wrapped in bandages when he spoke to reporters: "I was sitting in my house when suddenly a powerful blast shook the ground under me. I found myself covered in blood and ran outside in a daze. My lovely neighborhood was just rubble."
People were buried alive.
Shortly after the bombing, the
Kurdistan Regional Government, under orders from the
Iraqi ministry of defence
The Ministry of Defence ( ar, وزارة الدفاع العراقية) is the Iraqi government agency responsible for defence of Iraq. It is also involved with internal security.
Authority
The Ministry directs all the Iraqi Armed Forces, com ...
, started a 15-day operation "to follow terrorists and criminals in Kirkuk Province surroundings". 13 days later a high-ranking officer reported that ''"during a joint raid by Iraqi military forces alongside US troops in Haweja town, Mahdi Salih a terrorist was arrested who was the Kirkuk two blasts mastermind on 20 June"''
In December, Adnan Jassim Ali al-Hamdani, Walid Mahmoud Mohammed al-Hamdani and Hawas Falah al-Juburi were convicted and sentenced to death for helping to plan the attack.
Perpetrators
Perpetrators are not identified. Western media, like
Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was estab ...
, hinted at “…Sunni Islamist insurgents, including al Qaeda…”.
Reaction
*
Iraqi Prime Minister
The prime minister of Iraq is the head of government of Iraq. On 27 October 2022, Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani became the incumbent prime minister.
History
The prime minister was originally an appointed office, subsidiary to the head of state, a ...
Nouri al-Maliki
Nouri Kamil Muhammad-Hasan al-Maliki ( ar, نوري المالكي; born 20 June 1950), also known as Jawad al-Maliki (), is secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party and was the prime minister of Iraq from 2006 to 2014 and the vice president ...
called the bombing an "ugly crime" which was "an attempt to harm security and stability and spread mistrust of the Iraqi forces".
*the
Kurdistan Regional Government president
Massoud Barzani
Masoud Barzani ( ku, ,مهسعوود بارزانی, translit=Mesûd Barzanî}; born 16 August 1946) is a Kurdish politician who has been leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) since 1979, and was President of the Kurdistan Region of ...
condemned the bombings by saying: ''this coward act aims to disturb fraternity, peace and peaceful coexistence among the various constituents in Iraq and we for our part strongly condemn this criminal act.''
*
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
's Foreign Ministry criticised the bombing and issued a statement expressing "profound sorrow". The statement said: "Turkey attaches great importance to the efforts to ensure peace and stability in Iraq and to provide a peaceful atmosphere among different ethnic and religious groups in Kirkuk. We strongly condemn this heinous attack. We want to reiterate once again that Turkey is opposed to all kinds of terrorism and the Turkish people sympathize with Iraqi people who lost their beloved ones in the attack. We are ready to take in those who were injured in the attack for medical treatment. We are taking all kinds of measures including dispatch of an ambulance helicopter to Iraq."
*
The Turkmen Front announced three days of mourning and called for an "immediate investigation... and for the criminals to be brought to justice".
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taza Bombing
2009 murders in Iraq
21st-century mass murder in Iraq
Al-Qaeda activities in Iraq
Mass murder in 2009
Suicide bombings in Iraq
Terrorist incidents in Iraq in 2009
Violence against Shia Muslims in Iraq
June 2009 events in Iraq