A triple suicide bombing targeting a security checkpoint north of Baghdad yesterday killed at least 11 security personnel, a police officer said.
Saladin Governorate police force spokesman Colonel Mohammed al-Jabouri said three militants rammed explosives-laden vehicles into the main checkpoint near the town of al-Salam at the province’s northern entrance.
Thirty-four security officers were wounded, al-Jabouri said.
He said the attack occurred as the local police chief and head of the provincial security committee were visiting the site. Both were unharmed.
Almost at the same time, another group of militants on foot attacked a checkpoint at the eastern edge of the province, killing four policemen and wounding two others, he said.
One militant was killed in that attack, while the others fled the scene, he said.
Saladin Governor Raed al-Jabouri accused the Islamic State (IS) group of being behind the attacks, vowing to “retaliate for the martyrs by chopping off the heads of DAESH” militants, using an Arabic-language acronym for the group.
Raed al-Jabouri called on security forces to review their plans and on residents to cooperate with the authorities.
No group had claimed responsibility for the attacks, but Islamic State militants have claimed multiple similar attacks.
The Sunni group frequently launches attacks targeting Iraqi security forces and civilians in public areas. The group stepped up attacks in recent months, as it has lost territory in northern and western Iraq that it had captured in 2014.
In April last year, Iraqi security forces drove out Islamic State militants from the provincial capital, Tikrit, about 130km north of Baghdad. The attack came days after Iraqi government forces recaptured the town of al-Shirqat, north of Tikrit, from militants.
Backed by the US-led international coalition and paramilitary forces, the Iraqi government is gearing up for a major military operation to dislodge the militants from the city of Mosul.
QUIET START: Nearly a week after applications opened, agencies did not announce or promote the program, nor did they explain how it differed from other visitor visas Taiwan has launched a six-month “digital nomad visitor visa” program for foreign nationals from its list of visa-exempt countries who meet financial eligibility criteria and provide proof of work contracts. To apply, foreign nationals must either provide proof that they have obtained a digital nomad visa issued by another country or demonstrate earnings based on age brackets, the Bureau of Consular Affairs said. Applicants aged 20 to 29 must show they earned an annual salary of at least US$20,000 or its equivalent in one of the past two years, while those aged 30 or older must provide proof they earned US$40,000 in
AIR DEFENSE: The Norwegian missile system has proved highly effective in Ukraine in its war against Russia, and the US has recommended it for Taiwan, an expert said The Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) Taiwan ordered from the US would be installed in strategically important positions in Taipei and New Taipei City to guard the region, the Ministry of National Defense said in statement yesterday. The air defense system would be deployed in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山) and New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水), the ministry said, adding that the systems could be delivered as soon as the end of this year. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency has previously said that three NASAMS would be sold to Taiwan. The weapons are part of the 17th US arms sale to
SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS: The suspects formed spy networks and paramilitary groups to kill government officials during a possible Chinese invasion, prosecutors said Prosecutors have indicted seven retired military officers, members of the Rehabilitation Alliance Party, for allegedly obtaining funds from China, and forming paramilitary groups and assassination squads in Taiwan to collaborate with Chinese troops in a possible war. The suspects contravened the National Security Act (國家安全法) by taking photos and drawing maps of key radar stations, missile installations and the American Institute in Taiwan’s headquarters in Taipei, prosecutors said. They allegedly prepared to collaborate with China during a possible invasion of Taiwan, prosecutors said. Retired military officer Chu Hung-i (屈宏義), 62, a Republic of China Army Academy graduate, went to China
UNITY MESSAGE: Rather than focusing on what Trump said on the campaign trail about Taiwan, Taipei should be willing to engage with the US, Pompeo said Taiwan plays a key role in Washington’s model of deterrence against China, former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said in a speech in Taipei yesterday. During US president-elect Donald Trump’s first term, “we had developed what we believe was a pretty effective model of deterrence against adversaries who wanted to undermine the set of rules and values that the people of Taiwan and the people of the US hold dear,” Pompeo said at a forum organized by the Formosa Republican Association. “Succeeding in continuing to build this model will not solely rest at the feet of president Trump and his team,
RSS