Iraqi authorities say a suicide truck bomber has killed at least 16 people and wounded about 70 others in a northern Iraqi town.
They say the bomber rammed his truck into a local government building Thursday in Sulaiman Bek, south of Kirkuk.
The U.S. military has announced the deaths of 14 U.S. service members killed in combat in Iraq over the past three days. In the deadliest attack, a roadside bomb blast Thursday in Baghdad killed five U.S. soldiers, three Iraqi civilians, and one Iraqi interpreter.
Thousands of troops are combing areas north and south of Baghdad as U.S. forces intensify operations against al-Qaida in Iraq and allied militants.
The U.S. military says it has killed 41 insurgents during operations in Diyala province. Southeast of the capital, another five insurgents were killed and 62 suspects detained in a simultaneous offensive.
In another development, the U.S. military says American and Iraqi soldiers discovered an orphanage this month housing 24 severely malnourished and abused boys in a Baghdad neighborhood.
The boys, ages three to 15-years-old, were found naked in a darkened room, with many tied to their beds.
