Suicide Car Bomb Kills 15 in Iraq: Police
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - A suicide car bomb ripped through roadside restaurants at the entrance to the town of Baladruz in eastern Iraq, killing at least 15 people, police and provincial officials said Sunday.
The attack took place late Saturday at the entrance of Baladruz, which lies about 65 kilometres (40 miles) northeast of Baghdad, and was claimed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group.
"It hit a string of restaurants on the eastern side of town... Most of the people there were truck drivers transporting goods between Baghdad and Kurdistan," a police captain said.
The officer said 37 people were also wounded in the explosion. Khidhr Muslim Abed, a member of the Diyala provincial council, confirmed the toll.
ISIL claimed the attack in a statement posted on jihadist forums Sunday and said that one of those killed was a member of the counterterrorism unit in Iraq's police.
The group named the suicide attacker as Ali al-Ansari.
A string of explosions went off in Baladruz and provincial capital Baquba two weeks ago. Intelligence officials had warned at the time they expected more attacks, AFP reported.
A month ago, ISIL fighters attacked a prison in the town of Khalis, breaking at least 40 inmates free, including some senior members of the militant organisation.
