US says 30 killed by car bomber at funeral
May 2, 2005 - 6:13AM

A car bomb exploded at the funeral for a Kurdish official in northern Iraq on Sunday, killing about 30 Iraqis and wounding more than 50, the US military said.

The attack occurred in the city of Tal Afar, 150 km east of the Syrian border, said the military and Khisru Goran, the deputy provincial governor and a spokesman for the Kurdish Democratic Party.

Goran said a suicide attacker detonated a car packed with explosives in a large tent where the funeral was being held. But the US military said it was not a suicide attack.

The funeral was being held for Sayed Talib Sayed Wahab, a KDP official gunned down by insurgents yesterday in Mosul, Goran said from the nearby city.

The blast killed about 30 Iraqis and wounded more than 50, a US military statement said, adding: "Terrorists continue to target and disregard the safety of innocent citizens during their attacks."

US troops, Iraqi police and ambulances raced to the scene to take the wounded to a local hospital, but unidentified gunmen blocked the road and fighting broke out, Goran said. The US military had no immediate information about that.

"Tal Afar has became a pocket for insurgents, and we know that more than 500 terrorists are hiding there" Goran said.

AP

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/05/02/1114886278217.html