Two Iraqi children killed as bomb blast rocks Kirkuk

Kirkuk (Iraqinews.com) – Two Iraqi children were killed Tuesday in a bomb attack in al-Hawija district in oil-rich Kirkuk, a security source from the province was quoted as saying.

“Two brothers, identified as Hamad and Iyad Farahat Gomaa, were killed as an explosive charge detonated in al-Rashidiya district in Hawija, 45 km west of Kirkuk,” Iraqi website Shafaaq News quoted the source as saying.

“The two bodies were moved to the forensic medicine department,” the source added.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) militant group, in most cases, is responsible for attacks targeting crowded areas, including markets, cafes and mosques across Iraq.

Iraqi security forces, backed by paramilitary troops of al-Hashd al-Shaabi and Peshmerga fighters, had launched a military operation dubbed Martyrs’ Revenge to chase Islamic State militants at their hotbeds in Kirkuk, Diyala and Salahuddin provinces.

A total of 76 people were killed and 129 others were injured due to acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflicts during the month of June, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) said in its monthly statement on the number of casualties in Iraq.

Diyala was the worst affected Governorate, according to the statement, with 52 civilian casualties (16 killed, 36 injured), followed by Kirkuk (10 killed, 36 injured) and then Baghdad (19 killed and 18 injured). Anbar suffered a total of 7 civilian casualties (none killed, 7 injured).