Mount Lebanon Hotel destroyed by bomb blast in Baghdad
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A powerful blast ripped through a Baghdad hotel and neighboring houses Wednesday evening, killing several people and sending flames and smoke into the night sky in the center of the city.
Correspondent Luke Baker said several bodies were being pulled out of the rubble of the Mount Lebanon Hotel, a small hotel used mainly by Iraqis and Arabs.
The hotel, neighboring buildings and several cars were ablaze, and rescuers said many people were trapped under the rubble. The blast sent a column of flame and smoke into the night sky.
Ambulances and police cars raced to the scene, and crowds of frantic Iraqis rushed there to look for friends and relatives.
A crater about 20 feet across and 10 feet deep was blown out of the road outside the hotel.
Guerrillas fighting the occupation of Iraq have mounted several car bomb attacks in Baghdad in recent months. Hotels have been targeted several times.
Again, note that the "guerrillas fighting the occupation of Iraq" are still targeting Iraqis, not foreigners or coalition forces.
