7 killed in suicide bomber attack after Iraqi voteJune 21, 2013 - 11:21 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A suicide bomber killed seven people at an Iraqi vote counting center on Thursday, June 20 evening, police said, hours after polls closed in two Sunni Muslim-dominated provinces, according to Reuters. Most Iraqis voted for provincial councils in April but the Shi'ite-led government postponed elections in Anbar and Nineveh, citing security concerns after months of protests by the country's Sunni minority. The decision to delay voting in those governorates was criticized by the United States, which said it would compound a sense of Sunni marginalization that has fuelled a wave of violent unrest. More than 1,000 people were killed in militant attacks in Iraq in May, making it the deadliest month since the height of sectarian bloodletting in 2006-07. The suicide bomber blew himself up at a vote-counting center in the city of Ramadi in Anbar province, killing seven people, four of whom were members of Iraq's electoral commission. Earlier on Thursday, a roadside bomb hit a bus carrying five electoral officials in the town of Baiji in Nineveh, killing one, police said. In the provincial capital Mosul, a mortar round was fired at a checkpoint near a voting center, wounding two soldiers. On Wednesday, a suicide bomber embraced and killed a Sunni political leader, also in Nineveh. Separately, the bodies of three men kidnapped on Wednesday were found handcuffed with bullets to the head and chest in the town of Sharqat, 260 km (160 miles) northwest of Baghdad. Two of the men were farmers and the third a policeman. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Armenia, U.S. customs authorities to boost assistance with new deal The government has approved an agreement with the U.S. government on mutual assistance between the customs authorities. Armenia-Azerbaijan: Turkey wants deal after “positive developments” Turkey hopes “positive developments” in negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan will lead to an agreement. Police try to impede Armenian Church head’s access to war memorial Police tried to stop the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Karekin II, from visiting a war memorial. Greece says ready to help as Armenia fights flooding consequences Greece is ready to assist Armenia in combatting the consequences of deadly floods in the country’s north. |