1 February 2008 Baghdad bombings

On 1 February 2008, two suicide bombings occurred in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq. The explosions took place shortly before the call to Friday prayers, at a time when many Iraqis were out shopping or meeting with friends in market areas. The blasts killed 98 people and injured over 200 others.

Initial reports following the bombings stated that both bombers were women with Down syndrome, a conclusion drawn from analysis of their remains recovered at the scene. Subsequent reporting was less definitive, indicating instead that the women may have had depression or schizophrenia, and it remained unclear whether either woman had a condition that would have left her unable to understand the nature of her actions.

In connection with the attack, the acting director of the al-Rashad psychiatric hospital in Baghdad was arrested on 10 February 2008. Available reporting does not indicate that he was charged or convicted, and the basis for the arrest was not established in the sources reviewed.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki responded to the attacks by stating that the use of disabled people as bombers underlined what he described as the "terrorists' moral degradation."

No group's claim of responsibility was established in the available reporting, and the case is recorded here as unresolved.