Attacks Claim More Lives In Iraq As Crisis Deepens

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Attacks are sadly becoming part of everyday life in Iraq as several parts of Iraq felt the wave again Tuesday, a day after at least 68 people died in bombings in and around the capital.

Tuesday’s attacks are the latest in a spike of killings that has claimed more than 400 lives since the start of May, making it one of the country’s bloodiest months in recent history.

Five commuters were killed when a bomb exploded inside a minibus travelling through Sadr City, a Shia-majority district in eastern Baghdad, a police officer said.

Five policemen and 20 civilians were wounded in the attack, he added.

Another police officer said a suicide bomber set off his explosives-laden truck after passing a police checkpoint in the town of Tarmiyah north of Baghdad, killing a policeman and a civilian. Nine were wounded.

In the northern city of Mosul, about 360km from Baghdad, clashes erupted between police and gunmen, following a roadside bomb attack.

Three policemen were killed in the clashes, including the deputy head of police intelligence, officers said. Four gunmen were killed and 15 others arrested.

South of Mosul, a bomb hit a police patrol, killing an officer and wounding another, police said.

Alarmed by the recent bloodshed, UN envoy Martin Kobler pressed Iraqi leaders on Tuesday to do more to halt the violence, saying it is “their responsibility to stop the bloodshed now”.

Kobler has repeatedly urged Iraqi officials to engage in dialogue as violence and political tensions have grown in recent weeks.

He warned political leaders not to let fighters benefit from their political differences, and predicted that “the country will slide into a dangerous unknown if they do not take immediate action”.

No one has claimed responsibility for the recent wave of attacks.