ISIS suicide bombers kill at least 10 in Baghdad

Dead chickens are seen at the site of a suicide bomb attack in the Amil district of southern Baghdad, Iraq on Oct 3, 2016. PHOTO: REUTERS

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Suicide bombers struck two Shi'ite-majority areas of the Iraqi capital on Monday (Oct 3), killing at least 10 people and wounding more than 30, officials said, attacks claimed by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS)group.

In the deadliest blast, a bomber detonated explosives in the Amil neighbourhood of southern Baghdad, killing at least six people and wounding 16 or more, officials said.

Another bomber detonated explosives near a garage for taxis and buses and a tent providing refreshments to passersby as part of a Shi'ite religious ritual, killing at least four people and wounding 18.

ISIS issued a statement claiming the attack, saying it targeted Shi'ite Muslims whom the Sunni extremist group considers to be heretics.

ISIS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, and while the militants have since lost significant ground, they retain the capacity to carry out frequent attacks in government-held areas.

Iraqi forces are preparing for an assault on Mosul, a city in the north that is the last held by ISIS in the country.

But the ISIS threat will not end even with Mosul's recapture, and the militants will be likely to increasingly revert to insurgent tactics such as bombings if they lose the city.

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