Scores killed in wave of Iraq bombings
At least 50 die and 80 are injured in series of attacks, with violence claiming the lives of hundreds this month alone.
A series of deadly attacks in Iraq have killed about 50 people and injured 80, police officials have said.
In one of Friday’s incidents, an explosive-laden tanker was driven into the federal police headquarters in the village of Injanah, 55km north of Baquba, killing 12 people and wounding five, including the head of the federal police, Brigadier General Raghib al-Umairi, and his assistant.
In Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, an attack killed 10 people and injured 27.
AFP news agency reported that a suicide bomber blew himself up at a funeral inside a mosque. Anbar has been the scene of protracted fighting between anti-government fighters and security forces, leading to months of bloodshed and the internal displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.
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In the Sarha region of Salaheddin, clashes early on Friday led to a series of explosions, including one near an army base, that killed 12 people and injured 13.
In separate incidents, police said gunmen opened fire on an army checkpoint near the city of Samarra, killing two people, while car bombings killed nine and injured 25 in Dibis, a town located near Kirkuk.
Medical officials confirmed the casualties from Friday’s attacks. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the media, according to Associated Press news agency.
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks.
According to the United Nations Assistance Mission to Iraq [UNAMI], a total of 703 Iraqis were killed and another 1,381 were injured in February. These figures do not include those killed and injured in Anbar province, where 189 were killed and 550 were injured in Ramadi and 109 were killed and 648 were injured in Fallujah.
UNAMI says it has not been able to independently verify these figures, from the Health Committee of the Provincial Capital of Anbar, nor account for the status of those killed and injured as civilians.
Violence has afflicted the province since December, when police broke up a Sunni Muslim protest camp.