Iran condemns Iraq bombings

Iran on Thursday condemned a string of bombings in Iraq that killed 72 people during a major Shiite commemoration, warning that such "terrorist actions" would spread insecurity in the region. "Some parties are the main cause of the organized terrorist actions in Iraq ... and they should know that their actions will make the region insecure," a deputy foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdolahian, told state news agency IRNA. He said Shiite-dominated Iran would maintain its support of the Iraqi government. "The steps taken by the Iraqi government to consolidate security and stability are appreciated," Abdolahian said. The bombings and shootings on Wednesday killed at least 72 people and wounded more than 250, many of them Shiite pilgrims. The attacks were the deadliest for a single day in Iraq since August 15, 2011, when 74 people were killed. The targeting of pilgrims was a stark reminder of Sunni-Shiite violence that tore Iraq apart during a peak of violence in 2006-2007. The United States pulled its forces out of Iraq in December 2011, leaving only a contingent of 157 soldiers under the authority of the U.S. embassy.