SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: SENIOR American military officials have produced photographs that they said showed the bodies of two women suicide bombers who attacked two popular pet markets, causing Baghdad's deadliest blasts in months.
The photographs showed the lifeless faces of two dark-haired women with oblique eye fissures, a wide gap between the eyes and a flat nose bridge - characteristics consistent with Down syndrome.
The commander of US forces in Baghdad, Major-General Jeffery Hammond, said: "There are some indications that these two women were mentally handicapped.
"From what I see, it appears that the suicide bombers were not willing martyrs - they were used by al-Qaeda in Iraq for these horrific attacks.
"These two women were likely used because they didn't know what was happening and they were less likely to be searched." Suicide bombers had Down syndrome, photos show >>> By Garrett Therolf and Ned Parker in Baghdad
Mark Alexander (Paperback)
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