At least 26 killed in attacks by Islamic State in Tikrit: Iraqi security sources, medics

Tikrit (Reuters/IraqiNews.com) At least 26 people were killed, including 14 policemen, and over 40 wounded in attacks overnight by Islamic State militants in the city of Tikrit, north of Baghdad, Iraqi security and medical sources said on Wednesday.

The Iraqi Interior Ministry had, however, made no mention of the casualties, and declared controlling the situation after thwarting an attack by suicide bombers in Tikrit, the capital of Salahuddin province.

Interior Ministry spokesperson Saad Maan said security troops in Salahuddin killed two suicide bombers who attempted attacking a police patrol at al-Zohour district in Tikrit.

On Tuesday, a security source told Alsumaria News that “security forces in Tikrit killed all the Islamic State militants who attacked the city.”

The source, who preferred anonymity, said the attack left several casualties, including security personnel and civilians.

In related news, local authorities in the province declared suspending work at some governmental authorities in Tikrit in the wake of the attack.

Governor Salah Eddin al-Jabouri said in a statement on Wednesday that work will be halted in Tikrit only excluding service and health facilities.

On Tuesday, the provincial council said five armed persons were there in Tikrit, adding that curfew was imposed.

Earlier on the day, the council said a police personnel was killed, as troops clashed with IS fighters, who took shelter at one of the city schools.

Iraqi troops recaptured the city in 2015, after it fell to IS in June 2014, soon after Mosul.

As many as 1,115 persons, excluding security personnel, were killed and injured due to violence in the country, in March, according to The United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI).