A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden armored vehicle into houses used by Shia militiamen north of the Iraqi city of Samarra, killing at least 17 people, police and medical sources said Tuesday.
The police officer said the militiamen were monitoring the river to prevent Islamic State fighters coming from the east from crossing over to the west bank.
Samarra is a mainly Sunni city that is home to one of the holiest Shia Muslim sites in Iraq which is guarded by large contingents of Shia militiamen.
