The death toll from an ambush against Iraqi police in the province of Diyala has risen to 35, a local mayor told AFP on Thursday. Gunmen struck on Wednesday in the village of Al-Dulaimat near the town of Khan Bani Saad north of Baghdad, in one of the worst attacks against police in recent times.
Earlier it was reported gunmen shot dead 12 policemen and eight anti-Qaeda fighters. But the town mayor Naif Abdullah said another 15 wounded policemen who were sent to a hospital in Baghdad were dead on arrival.
The gunmen struck at around 3:30 pm (1230 GMT), a security official said.
According to AFP, he said the policemen and the anti-Qaeda fighters had gathered in the village when they were ambushed by the gunmen. Doctor Ahmed Fuad of Baquba hospital confirmed it had received 20 bodies.
The security official said the area surrounding the village is a longstanding Al-Qaeda stronghold. He said the slain policemen included three officers -- a colonel, a lieutenant colonel and a captain.
Meanwhile, the Iraqi army said on Wednesday that violence in Baghdad had increased in the past two weeks, forcing the authorities to spread troops across the capital. "The violence has increased in the capital during the past two weeks and the decision was taken to spread the army in all the districts," Major General Qassim Atta conveyed.
Atta said "terrorists had raised the level of violence (in Baghdad) by planting bombs (and) carrying out assassinations using guns with silencers." He said people and media employees have been warned to check their vehicles to thwart any such bids.
