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Suicide Bomber Kills 25 Iraqis; Many Wounded


Medical personnel wheel body of victim killed by suicide bomber in Tuz Khurmato city, Jan. 23, 2013
Medical personnel wheel body of victim killed by suicide bomber in Tuz Khurmato city, Jan. 23, 2013
A suicide bomber in northern Iraq blew himself up in a Shi'ite mosque crowded with mourners Wednesday, killing at least 25 people and wounding more than 75 others.

The deadliest attack in Iraq in months is expected to heighten ethnic and sectarian tensions. It wreaked havoc in Tuz Khormato, 175 kilometers north of Baghdad, during the funeral of a government employee who was shot to death on Tuesday.

The town sits on a tract of disputed land that Kurds want to incorporate into their autonomous three-province region. The central government in Baghdad opposes the move.

No group claimed responsibility for the bombing, which followed a series of of attacks in and around Baghdad on Tuesday that killed 23 people.

The U.S. State Department condemned the bombers as terrorists "willing to target all Iraqis, regardless of religion or ethnicity."

The recent upsurge in violence coincides with a wave of Sunni-led protests against Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Shi'ite-led government.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and AP.
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