Eight killed in Jordanian embassy blast
A huge explosion has rocked the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad, killing at least eight people.
The blast, thought to have been caused by a car bomb, reportedly killed embassy staff and guards, as well as at least two people in a car near the scene.
Thick plumes of black smoke billowed from the embassy building. Around 30 people are believed to have been in the embassy compound when the explosion occurred.
Reports suggest that the bomb was in an empty minivan parked by the embassy, and was detonated remotely.
Scores of young Iraqi men rushed up to the embassy after the blast and started smashing portraits of Jordan’s king, Abdullah II, and his late father, king Hussein, while chanting anti-Jordanian slogans.
Tensions between Iraq and Jordan have been exacerbated by Jordanian support for the war on Iraq and the recent decision to grant “humanitarian asylum” in Jordan to Saddam Hussein’s two estranged daughters.
There is also some resentment over the treatment of Iraqi workers in Jordan and the perceived profit Jordan received via Iraq’s oil-for-food programme.
US troops are currently at the scene of the blast in Baghdad and are advising people to leave the area in case of a further explosion.
Around 20 people are believed to have been rushed to hospital after the explosion.
