Baghdad Rocked by Explosions at US-held Munitions Dump

Nearly 500 Iraqis made a formal protest by forming a convoy after the explosions. One group of Iraqis protested Israel and the United States in front of the Palestine Hotel. The angry crowd, which had encountered U.S. forces upon arriving at the site of the attack, fired on the soldiers from time to time. U.S. Army 3rd Infantry Division Commander Frank McClary said: "Someone fired an unknown incendiary device into the depot, causing the strong explosion. This is sabotage." Three small children were reportedly among those killed, and a U.S. soldier was wounded in the firefight as well.

Another group claiming they could administer Iraq by themselves gathered in front of the Palestine Hotel, where U.S. forces had taken extensive security precautions by enclosing the hotel with a wire fence. The soldiers did not allow anyone near the hotel.

Sakir Nasir, head doctor of Zafaranyah State Hospital, said six people had died among those hospitalized and that 13 were currently undergoing medical treatment. Nasir indicated that some of the wounded had been taken to other hospitals. A doctor transporting some of the casualties stated that 40 people were killed in the blasts and that more than 30 were wounded.

Fatih Ugur / Baghdad / IRAQ