By JERUSALEM POST STAFFA car bomb struck a market in a Kurdish area in the northern city of Kirkuk on Friday, killing at least eight people and wounding dozens, police said. South of Baghdad, the military said a US helicopter was forced down, leaving two soldiers injured.
The attack in Kirkuk, a disputed oil-rich city that has seen a recent rise in ethnic tensions, occurred while the capital remained relatively calm under a driving ban aimed at preventing such attacks during a major Shiite pilgrimage.
The blast tore through the stalls as the market was packed with afternoon shoppers buying vegetables and household goods in a predominantly Kurdish area in southern Kirkuk, 290 kilometers north of Baghdad.
Police initially said it was a suicide attack, but police Brig. Gen. Sarhad Qader later said it was a parked car bomb. Qader said at least eight people were killed and 45 were wounded.RECOMMENDED STORIESIsrael Navy attacks Houthis for first time in Hodeidah Port strikeJUNE 10, 2025Russia to construct eight nuclear power plants in IranJUNE 9, 2025Greta Thunberg among voluntarily deported activists, eight remain in detentionJUNE 10, 2025Jewish woman reveals plot to poison Israelis at Boom Festival in PortugalJUNE 9, 2025