Suicide bombings kill 9 in northern Iraq

By Osman al-Shalash

SALADIN, Iraq (AA) – At least eight people were killed in two suicide bombings in northern Iraq on Sunday.

A bomber blew up his vehicle at a security checkpoint in Tikrit city, killing seven people and injuring 15 others, police officer Iyad al-Samarai told Anadolu Agency.

Another suicide bombing struck a car park in the city of Samarra, a holy site for Shia pilgrims.

“An Iranian was killed and 10 people were injured in the attack,” al-Samarai said.

Sunday’s attacks come amid a wide-scale offensive aimed at ousting the Daesh terrorist group from the northern city of Mosul.

In mid-2014, Daesh captured Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, before overrunning vast swathes of territory in the country’s north and west.

Recent months have seen the Iraqi army, backed by local allies on the ground and the U.S.-led air coalition, retake much territory.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 22,000 people have been displaced since the beginning of the Mosul offensive.