“There’s still a tendency to see these things in Sunni-Shia terms. But the Middle East is going to have to overcome that.” – Condoleezza Rice, January 2007.
We do see them “overcome that,” of course, when they unite against what they can agree on as a bigger infidel than what both sides see as an inauthentic Muslim. “Karbala bombs kill dozens during Shia commemorations,” from BBC News, January 20:
Two bomb attacks near the Iraqi city of Karbala have killed at least 50 people and injured more than 150, officials say.
The blasts happened on two routes being used by pilgrims taking part in the Shia Muslim commemorations of Arbaeen.
Earlier, a suicide bomber killed at least three people in the central city of Baquba – the second deadly attack in the city in as many days.
Violence in Iraq has reduced in recent years, but attacks continue.
Thursday’s bombings occurred near police checkpoints controlling the northern and southern entrances to Karbala.
Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are converging on the city from all over the country for the Arbaeen festival, which reaches its climax next week.
The dead include women and children, medical sources at Karbala hospital say.
A witness to one of the attacks, named as Khamas, told the Associated Press news agency: “After the explosion, people started to run in all directions, while wounded people on the ground were screaming for help.”
However, he added that pilgrims would continue to head to Karbala: “It will not deter us from continuing our march to the holy shrine… even if the explosions increase.”
No group has said it carried out the Karbala bombings, but correspondents say they bear the hallmarks of Sunni militants. […]
The Karbala attacks came hours after a suicide bomber blew up his car outside police headquarters in Baquba, killing three and wounding about 30.
On Wednesday another suicide bomber in the city targeted a police compound, killing 14.
And on Tuesday in Tikrit, the home town of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, a suicide bomber joined a queue of about 100 police volunteers and killed about 60 of them….