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The area is also home to many of Baghdad's minority Christians, ...Of about 35 people in the restaurant, most were Christian but some were Muslim... --------------------------------------------------------------------- BAGHDAD - A car bomb in central Baghdad tore through a restaurant packed with dozens of people dancing and celebrating New Year's Eve, killing five Iraqis and wounding 24 people, including three reporters for the Los Angeles Times. The explosion shook Nabil, an Italian restaurant on a well-to-do shopping street, at 9:24 p.m. The blast collapsed a section of the roof of the one-story structure, blew out windows, and flung blackened car parts across...

Explosion heard in Baghdad.   Greg Palkot from the Sheraton Hotel in Baghdad, across from the Palestine Hotel:   "We are hearing that the explosion is to the south of us...took place in the southern part of Baghad, around the Karada district, this is a very busy area...certainly would be...busy tonight..." "We're told that there's a large plume of smoke coming from that area."   Confirmed..."in Karada...a base for other international bodies...in area of Al Hamra (sp) hotel, a base for int'l (operations)...(witness saw) "a rocket arc...could have been a rocket propelled grenade..or missile...a red arc....Helicopters in the air...gunfire, we've...

<p>January 2, 2004 -- WASHINGTON - The death toll climbed to eight as investigators said the New Year's terror bomb that hit a Baghdad restaurant seems a sure sign the guerrillas are now going after easier-to-hit civilians. The injured included eight Los Angeles Times reporters and staffers.</p>

<p>BAGHDAD -- A car bomb ripped through a crowded restaurant hosting a New Year's Eve party in the Iraqi capital, killing five Iraqis and injuring 35 others, including at least one American and two Britons.</p> <p>The attack, identified by witnesses as a car bomb, came amid heightened security in Baghdad over the holiday as military officials expected insurgent attacks. There were two other explosions earlier yesterday near U.S. military convoys in the capital -- one a car bomb, the other a bomb hidden in bushes outside another restaurant.</p>

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 31 — A car bomb tore through a popular restaurant here filled with dozens of New Year's Eve revelers on Wednesday night, killing at least 5 people and wounding 24, including 3 Americans. The blast was the worst of a rash of bombings on Wednesday, confirming the fears of the American military authorities that insurgents would use the New Year's holiday as an occasion to mount attacks, as they did on Christmas Day. Iraqi police officers and American soldiers rushed to pull survivors from the fire and rubble of the Nabil Restaurant, once a popular spot for...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- A car bomb ripped through a crowded restaurant hosting a New Year's Eve party in the Iraqi capital, killing five Iraqis and wounding 24 others. The nighttime attack came amid tightened security in Baghdad as military officials expected insurgent attacks. Sirens wailed and helicopters buzzed overhead as ambulances and U.S. soldiers converged after the explosion on the Nabil restaurant, a popular spot with foreigners that had advertised a New Year's Eve party with live music and belly dancing. Three reporters from the Los Angeles Times, and four local staff members suffered injuries that appeared minor, said Dean...