Suicide car bomb targets Iraqi federal police checkpoint in southwestern Kirkuk

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A suicide car bomb on Wednesday targeted an Iraqi federal police forces security checkpoint in southwestern Kirkuk province, killing at least one security member, the defense ministry announced.

The bombing, which the ministry labeled a “terrorist” attack, took place at the entrance of Riyadh town, located in southwestern Kirkuk.

It killed at least one, according to the ministry, and injured dozens more.

After the explosion, ambulances dispatched to the scene and transferred the victims to a nearby hospital.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but over the past year, the Islamic State has repeatedly carried out similar assaults in the area.

“The vehicle was coming from the Albu Batush area,” a local security source told Kurdistan 24.

“The objective of the suicide attack was to target the Riyadh Mayor’s Office, but was detonated before reaching the site,” the source added.

Although Iraq declared victory against the Islamic State in December 2017, the extremist group continues to carry out insurgency attacks, ambushes, and kidnappings in the provinces of Kirkuk, Diyala, Salahuddin, and Nineveh.

Over the past year, senior Kurdish military officials in the Kurdistan Region have repeatedly warned the Federal Government of Iraq that the Islamic State is re-grouping in the aforementioned provinces.

The US-led coalition had also called on both the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the Iraqi government to coordinate and cooperate in the fight against the militant group to eliminate its threat in the country.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany

(Hemin Dalo contributed to this report)