Car bomb attack leaves two dead in N Iraq

BAGDAD, Dec 25 (Xinhua): At least two people were killed and 10 others injured on Tuesday in a car bomb explosion at a marketplace in the town of Tal Afar near Iraq's northern city of Mosul, a local official said.

A booby-trapped car went off at a crowded market which was recently re-opened in Tal Afar, some 70 km west of Mosul, Tariq Egrish, a member of the town council, told Xinhua.

It is the first such attack since the Iraqi forces fought fierce battles to liberate the town from the Islamic State (IS) militants in August last year.

The entire Tal Afar area also includes 47 villages scattered around the town, where the majority of the population are Sunni and Shiite Turkomans, in addition to the Kurds and other minorities.

On Dec 09, 2017, Iraq officially declared full liberation of its territories from IS militants after Iraqi forces recaptured all areas once seized by the IS militants.