Iraq Blast Toll Continues to Rise, Includes Children

A woman walked past the heavily damaged Ministry of Works and Municipalities in Baghdad on Monday.

BAGHDAD — As the floodwater from broken water mains and sewers drained away, workers continued to hunt for victims amid the wreckage from Sunday’s bomb blasts, recovering still more bodies on Monday as the death toll climbed to as much as 155 — including an uncertain number of children — with more than 500 wounded.

 

The Iraqi Defense and Interior Ministries began an investigation of security breaches that allowed the bombings to occur, according to a statement by the defense minister, Abdul Qader Mohammed Jasim. The bombs were in a minivan and a water tanker truck and had to pass multiple security checkpoints to reach their targets. Trucks are banned from Baghdad’s streets during daylight hours unless they have special permits issued by the military, and those are checked at every roadblock.