Suicide bomber attacked a checkpoint , kills 11 people in Iraq

Suicide bomber attacked a checkpoint , kills 11 people in Iraq


A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vehicle at a checkpoint in Iraq on Sunday , killing 11 people , after an angry mob set fire to several houses and the courthouse , officials said .

The latest violence comes amid a national bloodbath protracted killing more than 2,550 people so far this year , and sparked fears of Iraq slipping back into all-out sectarian killings in 2006 and 2007 , AFP reported .

The riots were driven principally by widespread anger among minority Sunni Arabs over claims of persecution at the hands of the Shiite -led government and security forces , in addition to the civil war in neighboring Syria .

The suicide bomber attacked a police checkpoint in Dibs , northern Iraq , killing seven policemen and four civilians , and injuring 18 people , among them members of the security forces .

After the explosion , an infuriated mob set fire to the local courthouse and five homes , including that of a police colonel and judge .

Iraqi security forces face periodic attacks from angry residents over their failure to prevent attacks , but the burning house and the court is unusual .

In a village in the Sulaiman Bek, also in the north of Baghdad , gunmen attacked the house of a police officer , killing his father and his brother and wounding two people .

Gunmen shot and killed a Sahwa militia of anti - al - Qaida nearby.

Solomon defender has been repeatedly attacked by insurgents , who had taken control of part or all of the area on several occasions .

A roadside bomb in Dujail region , near the northern city of Tikrit , killing three people and wounding six others .

The first elections in Iraq since American troops left the country at the end of 2011 will be held on April 30 , in a major test for the security forces .

While they were able to keep violence to a minimum during the provincial election last year , the security forces have failed to stop the unrest next year.

More than 320 people have died since the beginning of this month , according to AFP figures based security sources and medical .