Five mortars kill at least 4 in Baghdad

Five mortars hit a residential area in northern Baghdad today, killing four people and wounding six more, a police source said…

Five mortars hit a residential area in northern Baghdad today, killing four people and wounding six more, a police source said. There were conflicting reports, as is common in Iraq, on the number of casualties from the mortar explosions in Nuaaman district, a mixed area where both Shias and Sunni Arabs live.

"I saw three dead and 25 wounded, some of them seriously," said Abu Aliyaa, a resident of the area, who heard five blasts.

One source at Nuaaman hospital said 17 bodies had been brought to the hospital and 49 wounded, but there was no confirmation of that or whether all the casualties were from the mortar attacks.

A police source put the death toll at four with six wounded. Mortar attacks rarely kill a large number of people unless they hit a crowded areas such as a restaurant or market.

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