ERBIL, Iraq
At least five people were killed and 29 others injured in a suicide attack in Iraq's Erbil province on Wednesday, an Anadolu Agency correspondent has reported.
Five people -- including the attacker and two civilians -- died, and 29 were injured, the Kurdish Regional Government's Minister of Health, Rekawt Hama Rasheed, told the AA.
A Turkish citizen and a Turkmen were among those injured in the attack.
Erdal Dalga, a Turkish citizen working in the construction sector in Erbil, told the AA that he received injuries on his head and shoulder.
Fethi Maruf, brother of Aydin Maruf -- a parliamentarian for the Iraqi Turkmen Front -- was also injured during the attack.
He said, "As the Iraqi Turkmen Front and as Turkmen in Erbil, we condemn this attack. Nobody will reach their goal through these types of attacks."
An unidentified assailant attempted to enter the governorate building with a vehicle filled with explosives. He detonated the bomb after the security forces opened fire on him, police spokesperson Rayit Kerwan told the AA.
The attack also damaged some of the nearby houses and cars.
Security measures were increased in the area following the incident and the injured were rushed to hospital.
Erbil, which is known for being one of the safer governorates in Iraq, witnessed another attack in late September 2013 when seven people died in a suicide attack on the Directorate of Security.
Kurdish Regional Government officials said that the September 2013 attack was carried out by ISIL militants and that the assailants were captured.
In the Ramadi district of Anbar province, 15 ISIL militants were killed in clashes, Anbar's police chief told the AA.
ISIL forces attacked three separate regions in Ramadi and in total 15 militants were killed and two vehicles carrying heavy weaponry were damaged by military forces.
ISIL militants took over large swathes of Iraq since last June and since then there has been continuous fighting between ISIL and the Iraqi army.
While the army battles militants in western and northern provinces, other areas of the country have been the target of unrelenting bombings, assassinations and attacks against civilians and security personnel.
www.aa.com.tr/en
