Baghdad: Multiple bombings, including a suicide truck bomb attack on Shiite militiamen, killed 19 people today in Iraq, as police found four bodies with gunshots wounds in the capital, officials said.
Police officials said the deadliest attack took place today afternoon when a suicide bomber drove his explosives-laden truck into a checkpoint manned by Shiite militias near the city of Tikrit. Eight militiamen were killed and at least 15 wounded in the attack.
Tikrit, which fell under the control of the Islamic State group last summer, is 130 kilometres (80 miles) north of Baghdad. Iraqi security forces and Shiite militiamen now control most of the areas and roads leading to Tikrit, but have yet to retake the city.
Elsewhere, a bomb exploded near an outdoor market in the town of Youssfiyah, just south of Baghdad, killing two people and wounding 10 others.
Police said another bomb blast on a commercial street in Baghdad's southeastern district of Zafaraniyah killed two people and wounded six others.
At night, a car bomb exploded near a string of car repair shops in Baghdad's western district of Baiyaa, killing seven people and wounding 14 others, police said.
Meanwhile, four bodies with gunshot wounds in the head and chest were found in different parts of Baghdad. Dead bodies left in the street were a common occurrence during the widespread sectarian violence that engulfed Iraq several years ago.
Medical officials confirmed the casualties. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the media.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the explosion. Iraq sees near-daily bombings and other attacks mainly targeting the country's Shiite majority and security forces.
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