KHAN BANI SAAD, IRAQ // Rescuers in the Iraqi town of Khan Bani Saad were searching collapsed buildings for bodies on Saturday after a huge car bomb ripped through a busy market, killing at least 90 people.
The suicide attack by ISIL was one of the deadliest since it took over swathes of Iraq last year and came as the country marked Eid Al Fitr.
Residents recounted scenes of horror in the aftermath of Friday’s attack, in which officials said at least 15 children died.
Muthanna Saadoun, a municipal employee who drives a street sweeper, used his lorry to help put out the fires that the blast caused in the market area.
“People were burning in their cars because no ambulances or fire engines were able to reach them,” the 25-year-old said.
ISIL said the suicide attacker had three tonnes of explosives in his vehicle. The crater the explosion left in the main street of the town’s central Al Khan neighbourhood was about five metres wide and two deep.
Cuts of charred meat were still hanging from the hooks of one butcher’s stall that was ravaged by flames. Several collapsed buildings were still smouldering 12 hours after the attack.
A child’s toy elephant lay in the middle of the street as a defence ministry bulldozer shovelled the debris and cleaners swept bloodstained water.
“What we witnessed yesterday cannot be described. Fire, bodies, wounded, women and children screaming... Al Khan is now a disaster zone,” said Salem Abu Moqtada, 34, who sells vegetables in the market.
“The toll so far is 90 martyrs and 120 wounded, and we have between 17 and 20 missing,” Abbas Hadi Saleh, the top official in Khan Bani Saad, said.
“Every year (during Ramadan) there’s a bombing. We are guilty of being Shiite,” he said. “This is the biggest in Diyala since 2003.”
Sunnis began marking Eid on Friday but Iraq’s majority Shiite community started celebrations on Saturday.
Markets are usually packed in the days before the holiday as people preparing for large family gatherings shop for food and clothes.
Khan Bani Saad, which is only 20 kilometres from Baghdad’s northern outskirts, lies in Diyala province. The town is predominantly Shiite but has a Sunni minority.
“We do not have an Eid,” said Hussein Yassin Khidayyer, a 45-year-old shop owner. The force of the blast threw him to the back of his shop but he escaped unscathed.
“No one wished each other a happy holiday,” he said.
ISIL said in its claim that the attack targeted Shiite militias, a claim it often makes even when most of the victims are civilians.
According to witnesses and officials, the bomb went off at a checkpoint guarding an entrance to the market.
Vehicles could be seen heading south from the town with coffins on their roofs taking some the bombing’s victims to be buried in the Shiite holy city of Najaf.
Baghdad announced in January that Iraqi forces had “liberated” Diyala, significant parts of which had been overrun by ISIL after the militants launched a brutally effective offensive last June.
The militants no longer have fixed positions in the province but have reverted to their old tactics of planting car bombs and carrying out suicide operations or hit-and-run attacks.
Prime minister Haider Al Abadi condemned the attack as “a despicable crime by the “Daesh terrorist gangs”.
“We are determined to hunt them down on the battlefield and in every corner of Iraq until we get rid of the last terrorist,” he said in a statement.
Iraqi forces are currently pressing a broad offensive in Anbar, where they are tightening the noose on ISIL in the western province’s two main cities, Ramadi and Fallujah.
The United Nations’ top envoy in Iraq, Jan Kubis, expressed his “deepest sorrow.”
“This horrible carnage is truly outside all boundaries of civilised behaviour,” he said in a statement.
* Agence France-Presse
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Engine: 1.6L four-cylinder, with 1.56kWh battery
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Fuel economy, combined: 3.4L / 100km
Four tips to secure IoT networks
Mohammed Abukhater, vice president at FireEye in the Middle East, said:
- Keep device software up-to-date. Most come with basic operating system, so users should ensure that they always have the latest version
- Besides a strong password, use two-step authentication. There should be a second log-in step like adding a code sent to your mobile number
- Usually smart devices come with many unnecessary features. Users should lock those features that are not required or used frequently
- Always create a different guest network for visitors
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
Results
1. New Zealand Daniel Meech – Fine (name of horse), Richard Gardner – Calisto, Bruce Goodin - Backatorps Danny V, Samantha McIntosh – Check In. Team total First round: 200.22; Second round: 201.75 – Penalties 12 (jump-off 40.16 seconds) Prize €64,000
2. Ireland Cameron Hanley – Aiyetoro, David Simpson – Keoki, Paul Kennedy – Cartown Danger Mouse, Shane Breen – Laith. Team total 200.25/202.84 – P 12 (jump-off 51.79 – P17) Prize €40,000
3. Italy Luca Maria Moneta – Connery, Luca Coata – Crandessa, Simone Coata – Dardonge, Natale Chiaudani – Almero. Team total 130.82/198.-4 – P20. Prize €32,000
Scoreline
Ireland 16 (Tries: Stockdale Cons: Sexton Pens: Sexton 3)
New Zealand 9 (Pens: Barrett 2 Drop Goal: Barrett)
Arsenal's pre-season fixtures
Thursday Beat Sydney 2-0 in Sydney
Saturday v Western Sydney Wanderers in Sydney
Wednesday v Bayern Munich in Shanghai
July 22 v Chelsea in Beijing
July 29 v Benfica in London
July 30 v Sevilla in London
UNpaid bills:
Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN budget in 2019
USA – $1.055 billion
Brazil – $143 million
Argentina – $52 million
Mexico – $36 million
Iran – $27 million
Israel – $18 million
Venezuela – $17 million
Korea – $10 million
Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN peacekeeping operations in 2019
USA – $2.38 billion
Brazil – $287 million
Spain – $110 million
France – $103 million
Ukraine – $100 million
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
