Fourteen Turkmen civilians killed, wounded by mortar missiles in Salahuddin

Salahuddin (IraqiNews.com) Fourteen persons were killed and injured as mortar missiles were fired against district inhabited by Turkmen in Salahuddin, an official was quoted saying.

“Thirteen missiles were fired from behind the mountains in Tuz Khurmatu against of the districts of Turkmens in the region. A child was killed, while thirteen others were wounded,” Ali al-Husseini, head of Tuz Khurmatu town council, told Alghad Press on Saturday.

“All the wounded are Turkmen civilians,” he added.

Earlier on the day, a security source from the town said five mortar missiles were shot without casualties reported.

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 total of 117 Iraqi civilians were killed and another 264 injured, excluding police, in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in November, according to casualty figures recorded by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).

Baghdad was the worst affected Governorate, with 201 civilian casualties (51 killed, 150 injured). Salahaddin Governorate followed, with 24 killed and 60 injured, and Kirkuk had 12 killed and 28 injured.

Earlier on the day, Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi announced full liberation of Iraqi lands, declaring end of war against IS members.

Iraqi forces, backed by a U.S.-led coalition and paramilitary troops, have been fighting since October 2016 to retake territories Islamic State had occupied.