Gunmen and suicide bombers stormed a provincial council in central Iraq on Tuesday after exploding a car bomb outside, killing at least 8 people before Iraqi forces retook the building with help from US troops. The assault in Diyala province's capital Baquba, 40 km (25 miles) north-east of Baghdad, was the latest test for Iraqi forces as they prepare for a planned withdrawal of US troops from the Opec oil producer at the end of the year.
At least five gunmen disguised as Iraqi soldiers stormed the main gate after a car bomb exploded and a suicide bomber detonated his explosives outside. A second suicide bomber blew himself up as the attackers clashed with police, witnesses and local officials said.
An Iraqi counter-terrorism official told Reuters the five gunmen who raided the council were killed in the attack, which he said bore the hallmarks of al Qaeda. After initially saying US forces helped only with "observation support" from helicopters, the US military corrected its account to say a US patrol "in the vicinity" helped search the building and set up a security perimeter.
Some US military vehicles were also in the area. The US helicopters did not fire on targets, the US military said. During the fighting, several council employees caught inside one part of the compound said they managed to escape through a side entrance with the help of Iraqi and US forces. "I heard four to five big explosions," Salim al-Zaidy, a local human rights worker, told Reuters. "The Iraqi army special forces and US forces released us, using a back gate." At least eight people were killed in the attack and around 25 more wounded, local government and hospital officials said.
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