January 26, 10

NEWS / Ban deplores deadly series of bombings in Iraqi capital

25 January 2010 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned today’s apparently coordinated series of bomb attacks against hotels in Baghdad that have killed dozens of people and injured scores more.
“No cause can justify these attacks on civilian targets,” Mr. Ban said in a statement issued by his spokesperson, offering his condolences to the Iraqi Government and to the victims of the bombings and their families.

Media reports indicate that at least 36 people have died so far as a result of three large explosions in the Iraqi capital, each caused by a suicide bomber and aimed at a hotel frequented by Western business figures and the media. Some 70 others have been injured.

“The Secretary-General appeals to the people of Iraq to remain committed to a path of reconciliation despite such attacks, including through the ongoing election preparations,” the statement noted. “The United Nations remains committed to supporting them in that process.”

The bomb attacks have taken place less than six weeks before millions of Iraqis are slated to go to the polls on 7 March to vote in nationwide parliamentary elections.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=33574&Cr=iraq&Cr1=