Iraq

11 killed, 27 injured in Iraq bomb blast

11 killed, 27 injured in Iraq bomb blastAt least eleven people have been killed after a bomb blast hit a police checkpoint south of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

The incident took place during rush hour on Thursday morning, when an explosive-laden car drove into the checkpoint at one of the entrances of the southern city of Hillah.

A police official said some 27 people were also wounded in the attack and that the dead included four policemen. Some 15 cars were also damaged

Last month, similar bomb blast killed 36 people in the city.

On Wednesday, militants opened fire against Diyala provincial councilor Ahmed al-Harbi’s two-vehicle convoy in Muqdadiyah, northeast of the capital Baghdad, killing him and two of his guards.

Meanwhile on the same day, seven people were killed and 13 others injured in a car bomb explosion in the village of Bayukh north of the city of Mosul.

The attacks came as the country is heading toward an important election on April 30. The vote is Iraq’s first parliamentary election since US forces withdrew in 2011 and is a major test for security forces. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is hoping to win a third term.

Reports say tTakfiri groups such as the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) are coming to Iraq from neighboring Syria and Saudi Arabia to undermine security in the country.

The government in Iraq has blamed Riyadh for the chaos, saying Saudi Arabia is funding and arming militants fighting against Iraqi forces in the country’s western areas, including Anbar Province.

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