Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Attempt on VP's life could have been inside job
Security, Politics
(AFP) Police probing how a bomb was smuggled into a Baghdad ministry in a bid to kill Iraq's Shiite vice president believe the attack was carried out by an insider, a security official said yesterday. "Thirty-five employees of the public works ministry are now under interrogation by the interior ministry about how the bomb was brought into the building," the official said on condition of anonymity.
"Most of them are bodyguards and ministry security men," he said, adding that those wounded in the explosion will be questioned once they recover. Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi escaped with little more than a few scratches when a bomb exploded Monday next to a room in the ministry where he was attending a function, but five people were killed. State television described Monday's bombing as an assassination attempt while the security official said it appeared that high explosive was used.
"Employees were told a day before that the vice president was going to attend the ceremony. So the person who planted the bomb was already aware that he was going to be present," the security official said. "They started preventing visitors from entering the ministry a day earlier, so the criminal must be from inside. Early investigations indicate that an employee ... smuggled TNT into the building," he said.
"Most of them are bodyguards and ministry security men," he said, adding that those wounded in the explosion will be questioned once they recover. Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi escaped with little more than a few scratches when a bomb exploded Monday next to a room in the ministry where he was attending a function, but five people were killed. State television described Monday's bombing as an assassination attempt while the security official said it appeared that high explosive was used.
"Employees were told a day before that the vice president was going to attend the ceremony. So the person who planted the bomb was already aware that he was going to be present," the security official said. "They started preventing visitors from entering the ministry a day earlier, so the criminal must be from inside. Early investigations indicate that an employee ... smuggled TNT into the building," he said.
Labels: Adel Abdul-Mahdi, assassination attempt
