Skip to main content

Family massacred in Iraq bombing

  • Story Highlights
  • Bomb planted in vehicle outside house of a local Awakening Council leader
  • He was killed along with seven other family members
  • Awakening Councils, also known as Sons of Iraq, are anti-al Qaeda fighters
From Jomana Karadsheh
CNN
Decrease font Decrease font
Enlarge font Enlarge font

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- At least eight members of an Iraqi family were killed and a child was wounded Wednesday in a bombing in the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, local police said.

The bomb was planted in a vehicle parked outside the house of a local Awakening Council leader in southern Kirkuk, police said.

He was killed along with seven other family members, including women and children. A wounded two-year-old child was the only survivor.

Awakening Councils, also known as Sons of Iraq, are anti-al Qaeda fighters.

The groups are mainly composed of former Sunni insurgents who turned against al Qaeda in Iraq. They are credited with being a major factor in the overall drop in violence across Iraq.

Kirkuk is about 240 kilometers (150 miles) north of Baghdad, and is in a territory in dispute between the semi-autonomous Kurdish north of Iraq and the central government.

All About Kirkuk

  • E-mail
  • Save
  • Print