"We are informed that there are 122 bodies that have been takenback to the Sadr city, east of Baghdad, which adds the toll to a total of 965," an Iraqi Interior Ministry source told Xinhua.

A fake suicide bomb alarm triggered the stampede on a bridge over the Tigris River in Baghdad while about 1 million pilgrims from many parts of Baghdad and other provinces gathered near the Imam Mousa al-Kadim shrine in the capital's Kazimiyah district forthe annual commemoration of the death of the seventh of the 12 most sacred Shiite imams.

Hearing of the tragedy, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has expressed his condolences to the Iraqi people over the catastrophic loss of hundreds of lives of Iraqi citizens, UN spokeswoman Marie Okabe said Wednesday.

In a statement issued by the spokeswoman, Annan said he learnedwith great sadness of the human tragedy that took place in Baghdad.

"The secretary-general expresses his deepest condolences to thegovernment of Iraq and to the families of the bereaved," Okabe said.

On the same day, the United States expressed deep regret over the Baghdad bridge stampede.

"The United States deeply regrets the tragic loss of life of worshipers in Kadhimiya, Baghdad, today," US State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said.

"Our sincere condolences and thoughts and prayers go out to themany Iraqi families who lost loved ones in this tragedy," he said,adding that the United States also sends its "wishes for a speedy recovery to those who were injured in this tragic event."

Also, Iran extended condolences over the deaths of hundreds of Iraqis in the stampede.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi voiced condolences of the Iranian nation and government to the Iraqi nation and government.

Asefi also stressed that "suspicious hands" were behind the tragedy with the aim of creating "tension and bloodshed" among various ethnic groups of Iraq.

"Iraqi people should practice vigilance and solidarity to neutralize this conspiracy," the spokesman added.

On Wednesday, Jordanian King Abdullah II sent a message to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, expressing his condolences over the tragedy and his willingness to provide aid to the Iraqi people.

Jordanian Prime Minister Adnan Badran expressed in a telephone conversation with his Iraqi counterpart, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, his condolences over the tragedy.

Turkey expressed sorrow on Wednesday over deaths in the tragedy.

The Foreign Ministry said Turkey shares sorrow of the Iraqi people and offered condolences to relatives of the victims.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called al-Jaafari and offered his condolences.

Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said, during a call to his Iraqi counterpart, Hoshiar al-Zebari, that his country is ready to provide every form of aid to Iraq if needed.

Syria expressed grief on Wednesday over the Baghdad bridge stampede.

"Syria has received with pain and grief the hurting news of thebridge of Aaimma in Baghdad today which caused the death of hundreds of sons of the sisterly Iraqi people," a Foreign Ministrysource said.

"Syria, as a government and people, is expressing the sincere consolation and sympathy with sisterly Iraq and victims' families while she is aspiring for the day in which Iraq will enjoy security, stability and prosperity," the source added.

Greek President Karolos Papoulias sent his condolences on Wednesday to his Iraqi counterpart, Talabani, over the loss of life in the disaster.

He said in his message to Talabani that the tragedy "shocked usdeeply. I wish to express on behalf of the Greek people and myselfpersonally to you and to the families of the victims our sincere condolences."