Iraqi hospital and police officials say a suicide bomber has attacked a funeral for members of an ethnic minority in the north of the country, killing at least 20 people.
The suicide bomber set off an explosive belt inside a funeral held by members of Shabak minority in the town of Baashiqah, near the northern city of Mosul. Authorities said others were wounded in the attack.
The 30,000-strong Shabak community speaks a distinct language and follows a faith that is a blend of Shi'ite Islam and local beliefs. Most of them live in villages east of Mosul, the capital of the ethnically mixed Ninevah Province that is predominantly Sunni Muslim.
Another five people were killed in separate bomb and gun attacks across Iraq on September 14.
The attacks come amid a surge in nationwide violence that has left more than 4,000 people dead so far this year.
The suicide bomber set off an explosive belt inside a funeral held by members of Shabak minority in the town of Baashiqah, near the northern city of Mosul. Authorities said others were wounded in the attack.
The 30,000-strong Shabak community speaks a distinct language and follows a faith that is a blend of Shi'ite Islam and local beliefs. Most of them live in villages east of Mosul, the capital of the ethnically mixed Ninevah Province that is predominantly Sunni Muslim.
Another five people were killed in separate bomb and gun attacks across Iraq on September 14.
The attacks come amid a surge in nationwide violence that has left more than 4,000 people dead so far this year.
