Bomb blast kills five-member family, including children, northeastern Diyala

Diyala (IraqiNews.com) A whole family composed of five members were killed in a bomb blast, northeast of Diyala province, a security source said on Tuesday.

“A bomb exploded while a vehicle was passing on an abandoned road linking between al-Assaf and Omar Manda villages at the outskirts of Qurret Tabbah, northeast of Diyala. A man, his wife and three children, who were on board, were killed,” the source told Alghad Press.

“Security services conducted investigations and transferred the victims to forensic medicine department,” the source added.

Attacks launched by IS militants against security troops, the pro-government forces and civilians surged over the past few weeks in northeast of Diyala, which urge the Iraqi forces to prevent the militants infiltration between Salahuddin and Kirkuk provinces, especially the regions stretching along Hamreen mountains and Al-Azeem town. Several regions were freed in wide-scale military operations launched by army troops, backed by the U.S.-led coalition.
Violence in the country has surged further with the emergence of Islamic State Sunni extremist militants who proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in 2014.

A monthly count by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) said 518 Iraqis were killed and injured during the month of July. Nineveh province was the most affected governorate with 233 casualties, Baghdad came next then Anbar.