Iraq pilgrims Death toll rises to 43

IRAQ - The death toll from a suicide attack against Shiite pilgrims south of Baghdad on Sunday rose to 43, a doctor told AFP on Monday.

At least 67 people were also wounded in the attack in the town of Iskandiriyah, said the doctor, who works at the nearby Hilla hospital.

The victims were taken for treatment in three different hospitals in the area, said the doctor, who declined to give his name.

The suicide bomber blew himself up in the middle of a crowd of Shiite pilgrims at a rest stop in Iskandiriyah. The US embassy in Baghdad and the US-led forces in Iraq condemned the attack in a joint statement on Monday, and blamed it on Al-Qaeda. The statement gave no indication of the basis of the conclusion.

"We will work closely with the government of Iraq and their security forces to help bring the perpetrators of these attacks to justice," the joint statement said.

Tens of thousands of Shiite pilgrims from across Iraq were on their way to the central shrine city of Karbala on foot to attend the ceremony of Arbaeen, which commemorates the 40th day after the seventh century slaying of Imam Hussein.

Hilla, Monday, AFP