A truck bomb laden with chlorine gas exploded in a market area in a mostly Shi’ite town north of Baghdad on Tuesday, killing 45 people and wounding 60, police said on Wednesday.
The attack in volatile Diyala province took place in a market area in the town of Abu Sayda, a source said in the police headquarters in Diyala’s capital of Baquba. News of the attack did not emerge until Wednesday.
United States has sent extra forces to Diyala to fight entrenched Sunni Arab insurgents and al-Qaeda militants.
Insurgents have increasingly used chlorine in attacks as a new tactic. — Reuters