AA/Istanbul
Iraqi authorities announced on Saturday that nine people were killed and 13 others injured in the explosion of a tanker truck east of the capital, Baghdad.
The official Iraqi news agency reported, quoting Baghdad security forces commander Ahmed Salim, that “9 civilians were killed and 13 others injured in the explosion”.
“A technical failure is the cause of this incident and not a terrorist act,” said the same source without providing further details.
For its part, the security cell said in a statement that the explosion “occurred in a parking lot located between the Talibiya sector and the Cairo district, east of the capital, Baghdad, causing several casualties. .
The statement added that “Iraqi security forces have taken the necessary measures to determine the causes of the explosion”.
This is the first outburst after the Iraqi Parliament on Thursday granted its confidence to the government of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
Iraqi parties have failed to agree on the formation of the country’s new government since last year’s general elections.
According to a political norm in force in Iraq since 2006, a Kurdish candidate is elected president, while a Sunni leads the parliament and a Shiite assumes the function of Prime Minister.
*Translated from Arabic by Hajer Cherni
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