HILLA, Iraq (Reuters) - A woman suicide bomber killed at least 31 people and wounded 35 in a crowded market in the town of Musayab, 80 km (50 miles) south of Baghdad, on Friday, security sources said.

Islamic State claimed the attack, as well as one at the main bus station in the Shi’ite holy city of Kerbala, just west of Musayab, which killed three people and wounded 15.

A security officer said the bomber in Musayab was a woman and had hidden the bomb under her full-body veil.

Islamic State’s statements identified both bombers as men.

The hardline Sunni Muslim insurgents declared a self-styled “caliphate” over parts of Syria and Iraq three years ago but are now on the brink of losing Mosul, their de-facto capital in Iraq, to a U.S.-backed Iraqi offensive launched in October.

They are also on the back foot in Syria, retreating in the face of a U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led military coalition attacking Raqqa, Islamic State’s urban redoubt there.</s>Officials say at least 20 have been killed and 34 wounded in blast at a market in Musayyib, south of Baghdad.

At least 20 people have been killed and 34 wounded after a suicide bomber detonated explosives at a market in the Iraqi town of Musayyib, south of the capital, Baghdad, according to police.

"A suicide bomber blew himself up in Musayyib market, causing 20 civilian martyrs," an interior ministry spokesman told the AFP news agency

A police officer and a medic at a local hospital said at least 34 people had been wounded in the blast.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) armed group claimed the attack in a statement on its Amaq website.

Musayyib, about 60km south of Baghdad, has been hit by several attacks in recent years.

At least 22 people were killed and 50 wounded in 2014 when a mortar struck a busy area of the town.

Less than two weeks ago, two blasts in the space of 12 hours ripped through Baghdad, killing at least 27 people and wounding more than 100 others. ISIL claimed responsibility for the first suicide car bomb attack, which took place in the district of Karrada.

READ MORE: How the war changed Ramadan in Baghdad

Last July, ISIL claimed an attack that killed nearly 300 people in the worst attack to hit the capital in 13 years of war.

Further north, Iraqi forces are currently fighting to retake the last ISIL-held areas of Mosul.

Iraqi commanders say the offensive, which recently entered its eighth month, will mark the end of ISIL in Iraq, but concede the group will likely increase attacks in the wake of military defeats.</s>A suicide bomber blew himself up in a market in the town of Musayyib, south of Baghdad, on Friday killing at least 20 people, medical and security sources said.

“A suicide bomber blew himself up in Musayyib market, causing 20 civilian martyrs,” an interior ministry spokesman said.

At least 34 other people were wounded in the attack in the centre of Musayyib, a town that lies about 60 kilometres (35 miles) south of the capital, a police officer and a medic at the local hospital said.

There was no immediate claim for the attack, which struck at around 11:30 am (0830 GMT), but the Islamic State jihadist group has claimed responsibility for most such bombings recently.

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Also, Like us on facebook</s>HILLA, Iraq (Reuters) – A woman suicide bomber killed at least 31 people and wounded 35 in a crowded market in the town of Musayab, 80 km (50 miles) south of Baghdad, on Friday, security sources said.

 Original Article</s>Hilla (Iraq): A suicide bomber blew himself up in a market in the town of Musayyib, south of Baghdad, on Friday killing at least 20 people, medical and security sources said.

"A suicide bomber blew himself up in Musayyib market, causing 20 civilian martyrs," an interior ministry spokesman said.

At least 34 other people were wounded in the attack in the centre of Musayyib, a town that lies about 60 kilometres (35 miles) south of the capital, a police officer and a medic at the local hospital said.

There was no immediate claim for the attack, which struck at around 11:30 am local time (0830 GMT), but the Islamic State jihadist group has claimed responsibility for most such bombings recently.</s>At least 30 people were killed and 35 injured in a suicide bombing in a city south of Baghdad on Friday, reported Reuters. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack through Amaq, its propaganda news agency. The bomber, however, wasn’t identified by the group.

Iraqi security officials said a woman blew herself up at around 11.30 am local time in a market, just east of the holy Shia city of Karbala. “A suicide bomber blew herself up in Musayyib market, causing 20 civilian martyrs,” an interior ministry spokesman said. The bomb was hidden under the woman’s customary full-veil, said a security officer.

At least four of the wounded were in critical condition, said an official of the Musayyib hospital, according to a report in the Hindustan Times.

The group had bombed an ice-cream parlour in Baghdad in May. Close to 25 civilians had died in the attack, reported The Independent.

The militant group has called for increased attacks on “unbelievers” during Ramadan, which began on May 27. It had said the rewards for Jihadis in heaven increase manifold during this period. Five major attacks worldwide , including the London bridge attack, have been claimed by the group ever since.</s>Hilla: A suicide bomber blew himself up in a market in the town of Musayyib, south of Baghdad, today killing at least 11 people, a police officer and a medic said.

"There are 11 dead and 17 wounded from a suicide attack targeting civilians in a market in the centre of Musayyib," a police lieutenant said.</s>A suicide bomber blew himself up in a market in the town of Musayyib, south of Baghdad, on Friday killing at least 20 people, medical and security sources said.

"A suicide bomber blew himself up in Musayyib market, causing 20 civilian martyrs," an interior ministry spokesman said.

At least 34 other people were wounded in the attack in the centre of Musayyib, a town that lies about 60 kilometres (35 miles) south of the capital, a police officer and a medic at the local hospital said.

A source at Musayyib hospital said at least four of the wounded were in very serious condition following the blast, which rocked the market at around 11:30 am (0830 GMT).

The attack in Musayyib came hours after another, apparently failed attack in the Shiite shrine city of Karbala, a few kilometres (couple of miles) to the southwest.

Four civilians were wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance of the city's main bus station early Friday, police sources said.

Both attacks were claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group through its propaganda agency Amaq, which in both cases spoke of a "martyrdom-seeking operation" using an explosive vest.

IS has carried out dozens of deadly suicide bombings targeting civilians but Iraq has been on heightened alert since the start of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

More than 40 people were killed and dozens wounded in a spate of attacks on May 30, a few days after the beginning of Ramadan, including a devastating blast at an ice cream shop in central Baghdad's Karrada neighbourhood.

It was during Ramadan last year that IS carried out its deadliest ever attack in the Iraqi capital with a truck bomb that set two shopping arcades ablaze, also in Karrada, resulting in more than 320 deaths.

The bombings in Baghdad come as Iraqi forces fight to retake the last IS-held areas of Mosul, a city that was the jihadist group's emblematic stronghold.

Iraqi forces are almost eight months into a massive operation to recapture the second city and have already taken back its whole eastern side and much of the west.</s>Hilla: A woman suicide bomber killed at least 31 people and wounded 35 in a crowded market in the town of Musayab, 80 km (50 miles) south of Baghdad, on Friday, security sources said.

Islamic State claimed the attack, 30 km east of the Shi`ite holy city of Kerbala, as well as a suicide attack at a bus station in central Kerbala around the same time. It did not identify either bomber, in a statement on its Amaq news agency.

Security sources said four people were wounded in the Kerbala bombing, and one security officer said the bomber was also a woman and had hidden the bomb under her full-body veil.

The hardline Sunni Muslim insurgents are on the brink of losing Mosul, their de-facto capital in Iraq, to a U.S.-backed Iraqi offensive launched in October.

The group is also on the backfoot in neighbouring Syria, retreating in the face of a U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led military coalition attacking Raqqa, its capital there.

 

 Iranian-backed paramilitaries are taking part in the campaign against Islamic State in Iraq, attacking the group in the border region near Syria.

Islamic State declared a self-styled "caliphate" over parts of Syria and Iraq three years ago.</s>Your feedback is important to us!

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A suicide bomber at a market in Musayyib kills 31 and wounds 35. ISIL claims responsibility.