Bomber kills 10 Iraqi troops

A suicide bomber killed 10 Iraqi soldiers and wounded 30 others Saturday when he drove a truck packed with explosives into an army headquarters in a town south of Baghdad, the unit’s commander said.

The bomber aroused suspicion as he approached the compound near the insurgent hotbed of Iskandariya, and was shot by soldiers. Still, the attacker managed to detonate his cargo, Brig. Gen. Imad Selawi said.

Among other developments Saturday, a U.S. detention facility came under attack, the U.S. military announced the death of a soldier, and the Iraqi government issued an urgent demand that its northern neighbor, Turkey, cease operations against Kurdish militants in Iraqi territory.

The detention center in southern Iraq was hit by rockets, killing six Iraqis who were being held there and injuring at least 50 others, the U.S. military said. Witnesses said three rockets fell on the base in the port town of Umm al Qasr on the Persian Gulf coast. The military did not say who the detainees were or why they were being held.

No Americans were harmed in the attack.

In a separate battle in Diyala province, one U.S. soldier was shot and killed, the military announced. No other details were released. The killing raised the total number of American troop deaths to 3,506 since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, according to icasualties.org.

As the violence played out across the country, diplomats in Iraq’s Foreign Ministry formally demanded that Turkey stop the repeated firing of artillery shells into Iraq’s Kurdish territory in the north.

Turkish forces have been firing into the mountainous region in an effort to drive out Kurdish separatists who have found a haven there and to halt their attacks in Turkey. In recent days, Turkey, which is home to a significant Kurdish minority, has said it may have to take further military action.

In response, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry on Saturday summoned the Turkish charge d’affaires and asked him to deliver an urgent demand to cease hostilities in Iraqi territories. According to a statement, the incursions resulted in “intense fire, casualties and terrified civilians.”

The statement reiterated Iraq’s position that the Kurdish separatists’ actions against Turkey were unlawful and said Baghdad would work with Ankara to stop the militants. The Turkish diplomat agreed to transmit the message to his government but did not immediately respond to the Iraqi demand.

Labeed Abbawi, a senior Iraqi Foreign Ministry official, said in an interview: “We don’t think that using force will solve any problems, but it could create violence for the whole region. We have enough violence.”

The point was underscored later in the day in east Baghdad when a bomb embedded in the road exploded near a school, killing five civilians and injuring 12 others. Among the casualties were passengers of a bus set ablaze in the blast.

In north Baghdad, a car bomb exploded on the side of the road, killing one police officer and injuring five others.

At least 751 Iraqi security personnel have been killed since the U.S.-Iraqi security crackdown began Feb 13.

During a similar period immediately preceding the so-called surge, at least 593 Iraqi security personnel were killed, according to figures compiled by the Associated Press.

In Baghdad, 24 bodies were found Saturday, apparent victims of sectarian violence.

garrett.therolf@latimes.com

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Special correspondents in Baghdad and Hillah contributed to this report.