Iraq Health Minister Adeela Hamoud on Thursday said the toll from the Baghdad bombing has now risen to 281. Hamoud also said DNA samples were collected from 150 families to identify bodies, Al Jazeera reported. In the early hours of Monday, a truck carrying explosives drove into a shopping mall, where it was detonated. Hundreds of people were injured. The attack came as hundreds of Muslims had gathered in areas nearby to break their fasts.
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack. Interior Minister Mohammed al-Ghabban announced his resignation after the attack. Al-Ghabban called security checkpoints around the city “absolutely useless” since the truck likely got past several security points on its way into Baghdad.
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