Despite U.S. military surge, car bombings stay at same levels

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Source: McClatchy Newspapers

Despite U.S. military surge, car bombings stay at same levels
By Mike Drummond and Mohammed al Dulaimy | McClatchy Newspapers

BAGHDAD — Despite the high priority set by U.S.-led coalition forces to stem car bombings, the tactic remains one of the main killers of civilians in Iraq, according to figures compiled by McClatchy Newspapers.

The tactic took on a horrifying new dimension this past weekend when about 170 Iraqis were killed in five car bombs — as many as 155 of them when a produce truck laden with explosives leveled houses and shredded bodies in Armili, about 100 miles north of the capital.

Six more civilians were killed in three separate attacks in Baghdad Monday.

In Iraq, unwary motorists can be driving car bombs. Auto mechanics have been known to plant bombs in vehicles they're fixing, and phony checkpoints sometimes serve as ersatz car-bomb shops. Prudent drivers check under their cars after leaving them in public places.

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq/story/17731.html