BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The bombers who attacked the western Iraqi city of Ramadi on Sunday seemed determined to make sure none of their targets survived.
First, they bombed a crowded parking lot outside the provincial government's headquarters. Seven minutes later, they detonated a car bomb aimed at the rescue workers. An hour later, a third bomb exploded outside the hospital where survivors were receiving treatment.
By the end of the day, at least 23 people, mostly civilians, were dead and more than 80 were wounded in the attacks -- two parked-car bombs and a suicide bombing, according to local authorities.
The coordinated assault heightened fears among Iraqi officials and residents who have warned in recent months that Islamist extremists are trying to retake the Sunni Muslim territories they lost in Anbar, the province overrun with insurgents until U.S. forces and their local tribal allies drove them out in late 2007.
The Sunday bombings are only the latest sign of a stepped-up campaign to undermine Anbar security forces and the political process. The twin car bombings at midday outside the government compound in Ramadi coincided with a visit from a committee sent by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to check on the disbanding of U.S.-allied Sunni militias that were instrumental in the fight against al-Qaida in Iraq, said Efan Saadoun, head of the security committee for the provincial council. The Iraqi government seeks to absorb 20 percent of the Sunni fighters into Iraqi armed forces.
Police said the third explosion, about 1:20 p.m., was caused by a suicide bomber who tried to enter Ramadi General Hospital but was stopped by guards. Two guards and at least one civilian were killed when the bomber detonated outside the gate, police said.
Police commanders announced an open-ended curfew Sunday for Anbar's two major cities, Ramadi and Fallujah. They also cracked down on journalists trying to cover the blasts. The Baghdad-based Journalistic Freedoms Observatory, an independent media advocacy group, said in a statement that police beat reporters and destroyed or confiscated video footage in the aftermath of the bombings.
With little or no popular support in Anbar now, residents said, the insurgents appear to be sending a message that local security forces have failed to thwart their operations in the restive areas in and around Ramadi, the provincial capital, about 70 miles west of Baghdad.
Since June 30, when a U.S.-Iraqi security pact took effect, Iraqi commanders have taken charge of efforts to protect Anbar ahead of elections scheduled for January. It's no easy task in a vast area where borders with Syria, Saudi Arabia and Jordan are foreign fighters' main entry points.
"Who is responsible for this massacre?" shouted Abdel Moneim Ahmed, 42, a teacher injured by flying glass. "Where are the security forces? Where is the work of the police? What did elections do for us?"
