6 wounded in Diala blast

DIALA / IraqiNews.com: Six civilians on Monday were wounded in a blast in downtown Baaquba city, according to a local media source. “A motorbike bomb went off today near a joint checkpoint set up by police and Sahwa (Awakening ) forces in al-Tahrir area, downtown Baaquba city, wounding six civilians,” a media source from Diala’s police department told IraqiNews.com news agency. The Sahwa councils are anti-Qaeda fighters working in coordination with the Multi-National Force (MNF) and the Iraqi government. Headed by local chieftains, the councils have been credited with helping reduce violence in many Iraqi provinces, like Anbar, Diala, Ninewa, and Salah al-Din. Diala province, a mix of Sunnis and Shiites, extends to the northeast of Baghdad as far as the Iranian border. Its capital is Baaquba, 57 km northeast of Baghdad. It covers an area of 17,685 square kilometers (6,828 sq mi). SS (P) 1