Suicide bomber kills 22 in Iraq

BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber blew himself up at a funeral in a village near the Iranian border in Diyala province of Iraq Saturday, killing at least 22 people and wounding 15, a police source said.

"A suicide bomber wearing an explosive-belt blew himself up at 9:30 p.m. Friday (5.30 p.m. GMT) at a funeral tent in a Shiite Kurdish village near Sa'diyah town," the source told on condition of anonymity.

He added that four people have been reported missing after the blast because their bodies have not been found while some of the injured are in critical condition.

Local residents blamed extremist Sunni militants of the Al Qaida for the attack because the volatile Diyala province has been the scene of a massive US-led operation to hunt down Al Qaida operatives, the source said.