| 2008 Karbala bombing | |
| Location: | Karbala, Iraq |
| Date: | 17 March 2008 |
| Timezone: | UTC+3 |
| Type: | suicide bomb |
| Fatalities: | At least 22 |
| Injuries: | 58 |
| Perps: | Unknown |
The 2008 Karbala bombing occurred on 17 March 2008 in Karbala, Iraq.
The suicide bomb detonated outside a cafe near the shrine. The bombings killed at least 22 people and injured 30. The dead include seven Iranians.
Karbala is a city in central Iraq, 80km (50miles) south of Baghdad.[1] It is home to the Imam Husayn Shrine, one of the holiest sites of Shiite Islam.[1] The city had seen several other suicide bombs in the past, including one in April 2007 that killed about 50 people.[1]
There were two other insurgent attacks the day of the bombing, including a mortar attack and several suicide bombs, both in Baghdad.[1] The attacks coincided with a visit by US Vice President Dick Cheney.[1]
No organization has claimed responsibility. Iraqi officials suspected that insurgents affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq carried out the bombing. The governor of Karbala province said the bomber had been a woman but gave few other details.[1]