A mortar round that hit a busy street in central Baghdad on Tuesday killed five people and injured 39 others, the Interior Ministry and hospital officials said. Iraqi officials had earlier reported the explosion was a car bomb, but later corrected themselves. The blast on al-Rasheed Street, a commercial district in Baghdad, set one building on fire and damaged seven cars, said Col. Adnan Abdul-Rahman, of the Interior Ministry. Capt. Amer Nouman at the Medical City hospital said the blast killed five people, including two children. Three of the bodies were burned beyond recognition, he said. The hospital also received 39 people who were wounded in the explosion, most by shrapnel.
