Dozens killed in suicide tanker bombing in Iraq's Babil

A man reacts at the site of a suicide truck bomb attack, at a petrol station in the city of Hilla south of Baghdad, Iraq, November 24, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

BAGHDAD - A suicide tanker truck bomb attack on Thursday killed some 80 Shiite pilgrims, including 24 Iranians, at a fuel station in Babil province in south of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, security sources said.

The attack occurred in the afternoon when a suicide bomber detonated his explosive-laden tanker truck at a fuel station in the town of Shomali in east of the provincial capital city of Hillah, some 100 km south of Baghdad, destroying buses carrying Iranian pilgrims and many nearby vehicles.

The pilgrims were returning home after observing a major ritual of Arbaeen in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, some 110 km south of Baghdad.

The Shiite Muslims had already observed the death day of Imam Hussein, one of the Shiites' twelve most revered Imams killed in 680 AD and buried in Karbala, on Oct 12, in a ritual named Ashura Day, but they usually continue their mourning until the ritual of al-Arbaeen, or 40 days after the Imam's death, which took place on Nov 21.

The massive blast killed and wounded more than 100 people, but the security officials gave conflicted reports about the exact number of casualty.

However, the Iraqi NINA news agency quoted Falah Radhi al-Khafaji, the head of the security committee of Babil's provincial council as saying that the massive blast killed 80 people and wounded 31.

Many of the casualties at the busy fuel station were Iranian and Pakistani nationals, NINA said.