Two policemen injured in northern Baghdad blast

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Two policemen were wounded in a bomb blast that took place in north of Baghdad, a security source has said.

“A bomb planted on the side of the road in al-Ro’oud, north of Baghdad, exploded while a police patrol was passing. Two policemen were wounded,” the source told AlSumaria News on Tuesday.

“Other patrols and ambulances headed to the accident spot and transferred the injured to the hospital for treatment,” the source, who preferred anonymity, said.

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.

Violence and armed conflicts claimed the lives of 317 Iraqis, and caused injuries to 403 others during the month of April, according to a monthly count by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI).

The total figure of victims signalled a drop from 1115 victims in March.

Nineveh, where U.S.-backed Iraqi government troops are caught up in battles against Islamic State militants in Mosul since October, came on top of the most affected governorate, with 276 casualties (153 killed, 123 injured). Baghdad Governorate came next with 55 killed and 179 injured. Salahuddin came third, with 15 killed and 43 injured.