At least four people have been killed and a number of others wounded in a bomb attack near the US consulate in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, sources say.
According to witnesses, a bomb went off near the headquarters of the US consulate in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region at about 5:40 p.m. local time (1440 GMT) on Friday, sending thick black smoke into the sky.
Local television aired footage of a burning vehicle at the entrance of the building following the incident. Reports say there were two security forces among the victims of the bombing.
However, a US State Department spokesperson said “there are no reports of injuries to Chief of Mission personnel or local guards.”
“A vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) was detonated directly outside an entry point on the perimeter of the US Consulate in Erbil,” acting State Department spokeswoman, Marie Harf, said in a statement, adding, “We appreciate the rapid response of the Kurdistan Regional Government authorities to this matter and we will work with them to investigate the incident to determine the facts behind the explosion.”
Such incidents are rare in the Kurdistan region compared to other parts of the country, which has witnessed deadly terror attacks on an almost daily basis.
In a similar incident last November, several people lost their lives in a bomb explosion near the provincial government headquarters in Erbil.
Earlier on Friday, a series of bombings ripped through areas around the capital, Baghdad, claiming the lives of at least 40 people.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks so far, but there has been a spike in violence both in the capital and elsewhere in Iraq since the ISIL terrorist captured swathes of land in the country’s west and north last year.
The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) says nearly 1,000 people were killed by violence last month, while over 2,170 others were injured.
A great portion of the fatalities was recorded in Baghdad, where more than 360 civilians were killed.
The violence comes as Iraq’s army, backed by Kurdish forces, Shia volunteers and Sunni tribesmen, has managed to drive the ISIL terrorists out of many areas they had under control.
