Baghdad mosque explosion toll rises to 16 dead and 35 wounded; Iraq government says investigation underway

Baghdad: Iraqi security officials say the toll from explosions that tore through a mosque in Baghdad has climbed to 16 dead and 35 wounded. [caption id=“attachment_4500459” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] People gather at the site of an explosion in Baghdad’s Sadr City district, Iraq June 7, 2018. REUTERS.[/caption] The officials provided the updated toll on Thursday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters. A government statement said Wednesday’s explosions occurred at a weapons depot in Sadr City. It says it is investigating. The neighborhood is named after the family of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose bloc won the most seats in May this year’s elections. The vast, working-class district is a stronghold of his supporters, who battled US troops in the years after the 2003 invasion. No one bloc secured a majority in the 12 May elections, and the process of forming a new government could drag on for months.