Suicide Bombing Kills Two in Eastern Iraq

12 August 2008 -- Iraqi officials have imposed a curfew in the capital of eastern Diyala province after a suicide bomber killed at least two people and wounded at least seven others Tuesday.

U.S. and Iraqi officials say the blast occurred near a convoy carrying the Diyala governor Raad Rasheed and an Iraqi army commander in the provincial capital, Baquba. The two were unharmed in the attack.

The U.S. military says the bomber, dressed as a woman, was attempting to approach the convoy when soldiers identified him as a threat and opened fire, causing the explosives to detonate.

Iraqi and U.S. forces recently launched an offensive in Diyala to crack down on insurgents. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is offering amnesty to militants who surrender.

But the Iraqi government announced Monday that it would temporarily suspend its military operations in the province to give gunmen a chance to surrender.

Tuesday's blast is the second suicide attack in the city in two days. On Monday, a female bomber blew herself up near a group of police officers in Baquba, killing one.

Elsewhere, the U.S. military says Iraqi security forces detained 70 suspected militants in a separate operation Friday in Iskandariya, south of Baghdad.

In western Anbar province, the military says a U.S. Marine was killed and two others wounded when their unit came under attack from militants in a village southwest of Tikrit Sunday.

In other news, Iraqi officials say the speaker of Iraq's parliament, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, traveled to Jordan today for medical treatment, after experiencing heart problems. Officials did not elaborate on his condition.

Source: VOA News

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