Shiite mosque casualties reach 100

KIRKUK / IraqiNews.com: Casualties from the blast that occurred earlier today in front of a Shiite mosque near Kirkuk city have reached 100, according to a local police chief. “The toll has risen to 20 dead and 80 wounded persons,” Brig. Sarhad Qadir told IraqiNews.com news agency, adding that the blast was caused by a truck bomb. Earlier today, the official said that casualties from the blast that occurred in front of al-Rasoul Mosque in Taza district (30 km south of Kirkuk city) reached seven dead and 30 wounded persons. The blast occurred while worshippers were leaving the mosque. The attack is the second to hit the province within hours. Earlier today, an improvised explosive device (IED) targeted the convoy of Col. Abdullah Qadir, a police director in Kirkuk, wounding two civilians. Kirkuk, an oil-rich and mixed city of Kurds, Turkmen, Christians, and Arabs, lies 250 km northeast of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. SS (P) 1