6 killed, 9 wounded in Iraq attacks

BAGHDAD: Iraqi officials say attacks across Iraq have killed six people and wounded 10. A police officer says a roadside bomb targeting a police patrol in northern Baghdad killed two civilians and wounded four on Thursday morning.

Another officer says gunmen in a speeding car attacked a police patrol in southwestern Baghdad, killing a policeman and wounding four.

Police in the northern city of Mosul say drive-by shooters killed two civilians. And in the northern city of Kirkuk, a policeman was killed and two were wounded in an exchange of fire with two militants who were planting a roadside bomb. One militant was also killed in the shootout.

Health officials confirmed the causality figures. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Meanwhile, Iraq’s parliament approved a $118.6 billion national budget on Thursday after months of wrangling over how much should be allocated to foreign oil companies working in the country’s self-ruled northern Kurdish region, a lawmaker said.

Kurds and the Arab-led government in Baghdad have been at loggerheads for years over rights to develop Iraq’s vast oil wealth. Since 2003 U.S.-led invasion, the Kurds have unilaterally signed more than 50 deals with the oil companies — deals Baghdad considers illegal.

Lawmaker Kamal Al Saiedi said after the legislative session that the Kurds asked for $3.5 billion while Baghdad only allocated about $650 million. Baghdad has accused the Kurds of withholding billions of dollars in oil payments from state coffers.

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