Two explosions in Kirkuk injure 16 civilians: health official
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region— 16 people have been injured following two explosions in Kirkuk mid-Saturday, according to health department officials.
The first explosion took place in Ahmed Agha market in the city’s downtown, while the second targeted a bridge in the south of the city. Both bombs were placed in trash cans, according to a military commander.
Both areas are busy hubs for job-seekers.
Karim Ali, head of the health department told Rudaw that “as the result of both explosions, 16 people were injured."
Saad Harbiya, the commander of Kirkuk Operations Command, told reporters at the scene that there were no human losses.
“Thankfully, only a few people were injured slightly,” he told Rudaw.
Six people remain in hospital, according to the commander.
The explosions “do not affect the morale of the people of Kirkuk,” he added.
No one has claimed responsibility for the explosions.
Harbiya thanked the people of Kirkuk for “cooperating” with security forces, promising to arrest the perpetrators. He also said that their forces have arrested and killed several ISIS cells recently.
Kirkuk, disputed between the Kurdish Regional Government and Baghdad, has been a hotspot for jihadist attacks in recent months.
Islamic State (ISIS) remnants attacked Kurdish security forces (Asayesh) with mortars late Friday, killing three, including their commander, and injuring seven others in Kolajo, Diyala province.
The latest Pentagon inspector general report said that the Islamic State continued to cement and expand its command and control structure in Iraq, enabling the group to stage more attacks.
"ISIS in Iraq conducted both attacks of opportunity, such as improvised bombs and hit-and-run attacks, and attacks designed to intimidate or gain influence, such as assassinations, kidnappings, and sniper attacks,” the report read, citing the Combined Joint Task Force–OIR (CJTF-OIR) which leads the fights against ISIS.
The Iraqi Security Forces remain “largely unwilling or incapable of holding terrain in the mountains and central and southern wadis of Kirkuk province,” it said.
ISIS mortar fire on a Kirkuk soccer field was said to have killed six people and injured nine on August 25, the report added.
A series of explosions shook the city on May 30, killing at least four people and wounding 23 others.