Suicide Attack Kills More Than 200 People in Baghdad

A bomb ripped through a busy shopping district in central Baghdad early on Sunday, killing over 200 people and wounding around 200 more, according to Iraqi officials.

The blast in the Karrada area, where many people go to shop ahead of the holiday marking the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. Many of the dead and wounded are children, according to news reports.

Interior Ministry spokesman Saad Maan said the attack was a car bomb near a restaurant, and that it burned shops in the area. In the second attack, an improvised explosive device detonated in the eastern part of the city, killing five and injuring 16. 

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement circulated online by supporters of the ultra-hardline Sunni group.

The Islamic State group overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but has since lost significant ground to Iraqi forces, most recently in Fallujah, a city west of Baghdad that was recaptured a week ago.