Iraqi cabinet discusses security strategy as 27 left dead across the country after fresh wave of violence

An Iraqi woman walks past burnt out vehicles and damaged buildings following a car bomb explosion in Baghdad. AFP Photo

A fresh wave of violence swept Iraq on Tuesday, killing 27 people. 

The deaths came as the Iraqi cabinet met to discuss rehauling national security strategies, in light of the unrest that has killed over 500 civilians this month alone. 

As of Tuesday, 530 people have been killed and more than 1,300 wounded in May, making it the deadliest month in at least a year, according AFP. 

Bomb attacks in Baghdad, including a bus-bomb in the Sadr City area of the capital, were responsible for the majority of the deaths. 

Gunmen shot anti-Al Qaeda militiamen in Tikrit, north of Baghdad, whilst a third man was shot in Kirkuk. 

In Mosul, four police and four gunmen died in clashes, and gunmen also shot dead a tribal sheikh in the northern city, AFP reported.

Police intelligence officer Lieutenant Colonel Faris al-Rashidi and wounded three other policemen in Mosul, Meanwhile, south of Mosul, a suicide bomber killed a soldier as he drove a explosive-rigged car through the busy city. 

The government cabinet discussed Iraq’s “security challenges” and ways to address them, afterwards announcing a series of measures aimed at stemming the bloodletting, according to AFP.

A cabinet statement said that the measures included  “pursuing all kinds of militias,” and urged for a meeting of political powers to address the situation that is rapidly developing in Iraq.