1st LD: At least 4 killed in attacks near Iraq's Najaf

At least four people were killed and some 20 others wounded on Sunday when gunmen and suicide bombers attacked a town near the holy Shiite city of Najaf in central Iraq, a local security source said.

The attack occurred in the morning when three vehicles carrying gunmen targeted a checkpoint at the entrance of the town of al-Qadsiyah, some 70 km southwest of Najaf, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Two suicide bombers blew up their explosive vests at the checkpoint to open the way for the vehicles to enter the town, sparking hours of heavy clashes with the local security forces, the source said.

The attackers opened fire of machine guns on civilians at a popular marketplace near the checkpoint, the source said.

Most of the killed and wounded were from the security forces who fought back the attackers, the source added.

Later on, Lu'ay al-Yasiry, the governor of Najaf province said in a brief statement that the security situation in al-Qadsiyah town is under control after the security forces killed all the attackers.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) militant group, in most cases, is responsible for such suicide bombings targeting Iraqi security forces as well as crowded areas, including markets, cafes and mosques across the country.

The attacks came as the Iraqi security forces backed by anti-IS international coalition were carrying out a major offensive to drive out the IS militants from its last major stronghold in and around Mosul.

Many blame the current chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups, such as the IS, on the U.S., which invaded and occupied Iraq in March 2003. Endit