UN chief offers condolences to Iraq after ISIS stadium bombing
Friday's bombing took place during a match in a small stadium in the city of Iskanderiyah
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon offered his condolences on Saturday to the families and friends of the 41 people killed in a suicide bombing at a soccer stadium in Iraq, adding that the "the international community stands with Iraqis in horror and outrage."
Speaking during an official visit to Iraq Saturday, Ban said that the battle against ISIS - which claimed the attack - must comply with international law, noting continued reports of arbitrary arrests and killings in ISIS-liberated areas.
Friday's bombing took place during a match in a small stadium in the city of Iskanderiyah, 50 kilometers from the capital, Baghdad. The bombing killed 41 people and wounded 105, security and health officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters.
The president of the world football federation FIFA, Gianni Infantino, also offered his condolences to those killed. "Around the world, football unites people. It is a very sad day, when people, going to a match together, become the victims of such violence," he said in a statement.
ISIS has lost ground in recent months in Iraq and Syria, but has struck back in a series of large attacks targeting civilians.
-
Turkish army says soldier killed in northern Iraq
The army said rockets fired by ISIS landed in a base where Turkish troops were deployed Middle East -
Syrian army advancing inside ISIS-held Palmyra
Recapturing the city would open up eastern Syria to the regime's forces Middle East -
US kills senior ISIS leader in Syria strike
Carter says U.S. forces have killed a senior ISIS leader known as Haji Imam Middle East -
Triple suicide bombings rock Yemen’s Aden
An ISIS affiliate claimed responsibility for the attacks in a short statement carrying the name of the group's news agency, Amaq Middle East