5 killed in Iraqi capital

By Ibrahim Salih

BAGHDAD

Five people were killed and eight others injured in a spate of attacks in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Monday, according to a local police officer.

An explosive device exploded in al-Yusufiya, south of Baghdad, killing two people and injuring eight others, captain Hasan al-Noufal told Anadolu Agency.

One person was also killed in a bomb blast west of Baghdad, al-Noufal said.

Meanwhile, two women were found dead in eastern Baghdad with gunshot wounds to their bodies.

There has been no claim of responsibility for Monday’s attacks, though Iraqi authorities often point the finger at the Daesh terrorist group, which overran vast swathes of territory in northern and western Iraq in 2014.

Iraqi forces are currently preparing a major offensive to recapture Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, from Daesh group.