14 killed in clashes, suicide bombing in Iraqi town

A total of 14 people were killed and more than seven others wounded on Monday in clashes between Sunni tribesmen and Islamic State militants in a town in the predominantly Sunni province of Salahudin, a local security source said.

The clashes erupted early Monday morning when dozens of Islamic State militants attacked the defensive lines of fighters of the al- Jubour Sunni tribe in the town of Dhuluiyah, some 90 km north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

During the clashes, a suicide bomber drove an explosive-laden vehicle into the northern entrance of the town and blew it up, leaving 10 local policemen and tribal fighters killed and seven wounded, the source said.

Meanwhile, four militants, who sneaked by a boat across the Tigris River to the town, were killed in the clashes, the source said.

The Jubour tribesmen and local police have been fighting militants of the Islamic State, an al-Qaida offshoot, for more than two months and repelled many attacks by the extremist group which once seized the town but was driven out.

Iraq is witnessing some of its worst violence in recent years. According to the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq, terrorism and violence have killed 5,576 civilians in Iraq in the first half of this year, with 11,666 more wounded.