Five killed by truck blast north of Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Feb 20 (Reuters) A truck carrying gas exploded near a restaurant just north of Baghdad today, killing five people and injuring over a hundred, including many women and children poisoned by gas released in the blast, police said.

Police said the blast in Taji, 20 km from the capital, might have been a bomb attack but they were also investigating whether it could have been an accident.

They initially said the truck was carrying liquid natural gas but later said it was chlorine gas. Five people were killed by the blast and around 138 hurt, many of them poisoned by the gas being transported on the truck, police said.

The explosion took place near a restaurant on the main road from Baghdad to the north of Iraq, at a rest stop which also included a tyre repair workshop and other facilities.

Chlorine gas, which is toxic and can irritate the respiratory system, is used for water purification.

REUTERS SY DS1240