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| Iraq: Tikrit police HQ hit by deadly tanker bomb attack | Iraq: Tikrit police HQ hit by deadly tanker bomb attack |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A suicide attacker has blown up a tanker lorry at the police HQ in the Iraqi city of Tikrit, killing at least seven people, officials say. | |
| A majority of the casualties and injured are thought to have been police officers, AFP news agency reports. | A majority of the casualties and injured are thought to have been police officers, AFP news agency reports. |
| The city, which lies 160km (100 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, was the hometown of ex-leader Saddam Hussein. | The city, which lies 160km (100 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, was the hometown of ex-leader Saddam Hussein. |
| Violence has decreased in Iraq since the peak of the insurgency in 2006 and 2007, but bombings are still common. | Violence has decreased in Iraq since the peak of the insurgency in 2006 and 2007, but bombings are still common. |
| Sunni Islamist militants linked to al-Qaeda have vowed to step up attacks on Shia and official targets this year, in an attempt to weaken the Shia-led government. | Sunni Islamist militants linked to al-Qaeda have vowed to step up attacks on Shia and official targets this year, in an attempt to weaken the Shia-led government. |
| Last week, at least 19 people died and more than 100 were wounded in a spate of car bomb attacks in the northern city of Kilkurk. | Last week, at least 19 people died and more than 100 were wounded in a spate of car bomb attacks in the northern city of Kilkurk. |
| The violence comes ahead of provincial elections scheduled to take place on 20 April. | The violence comes ahead of provincial elections scheduled to take place on 20 April. |
| The country is experiencing a deep political crisis, with Prime Minister Nouri Maliki sharply at odds with a range of political forces, including the Kurds, most of the Sunni groups, and many factions within his own Shia community. | The country is experiencing a deep political crisis, with Prime Minister Nouri Maliki sharply at odds with a range of political forces, including the Kurds, most of the Sunni groups, and many factions within his own Shia community. |