Civilian killed in IED blast, southwest of Baghdad
A car bomb explosion. File Photo
Speaking to AlSumaria News, the source said, “a bomb planted under a civilian’s vehicle exploded at noon while the vehicle was at Shuhadaa al-Bayaa region in southwest of Baghdad. The citizen was killed immediately.”
“Security troops cordoned off the accident spot and transferred the victim to forensic medicine department,” the source, who preferred anonymity, added.
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.
Security members, paramilitary groups and civilians are targeted by bombings and armed attacks since the Iraqi government launched a wide-scale campaign to retake IS-occupied areas in 2016.
More than 500 Iraqis were killed and injured during July due to violence and armed conflicts, according to a monthly count by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI). Baghdad was the second most affected province with 38 killed and 85 injured.
“A total of 241 Iraqi civilians were killed and another 277 injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in Iraq in July,” the UNAMI report said, noting that the security personnel casualties were excluded from the figures.
While most of of the explosions attacks went without a claim of responsibility, Islamic State has claimed several incidents.