In Iraq, 87 Bodies Found in 24 Hours

In Iraq, 87 Bodies Found in 24 Hours

The latest carnage appears to be almost wholly sectarian–that is, Shiite versus Sunni–and linked to last month’s destruction of an important Shiite shrine. The single-day death tally of 87 follows a spate of weekend attacks that claimed 58 lives.

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BAGHDAD, Iraq – Police in the past 24 hours have found the bodies of at least 87 people killed by execution-style shootings — a gruesome wave of apparent sectarian reprisal slayings, officials said Tuesday.

The dead included at least 29 bodies stacked in a mass grave in an eastern Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad.

The bloodshed — the second wave of mass killings in Iraq since bombers destroyed an important Shiite shrine last month — followed weekend attacks in a teeming Shiite slum in which 58 people died and more than 200 were wounded.

North of the capital, a roadside bomb exploded Tuesday among Shiite pilgrims headed on foot to the holy city Karbala, killing one person and injuring seven near Baqouba, police said.

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