Suicide Bomber Kills 8 at Iraqi Market

BAGHDAD — A suicide bomber on Saturday attacked a group of Iraqi soldiers at an entrance of a large market in the northern city of Mosul, killing 5 soldiers and 3 other people and wounding 19, according to an Iraqi security official.

Women and children were among the wounded, the official said.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he did not want to jeopardize his access to important information.

Around 6:30 p.m., the bomber attacked the group of soldiers as the market was closing and shoppers were leaving, the official said.

The soldiers typically stand at the market’s entrances as a safety precaution. The market, which sells food and clothing, is one of the largest in Mosul.

Just a few months ago, a merchant at the market was killed by a gunman. There have been several other attacks on the market in recent years.

There was other violence in Iraq on Saturday.

In Baghdad, gunmen dressed in military uniforms stormed the house of an employee of the Ministry of Industry and Minerals, killing the employee and his daughter. One of the gunmen was killed by the employee’s neighbors.

Also in Baghdad, gunmen stormed the home of a local judge, killing the judge and one of his bodyguards. The gunmen then blew up the judge’s house. An army colonel was also assassinated in Baghdad.

In Najaf, a homemade bomb was detonated near an American convoy, although no deaths were reported.

Violence has decreased significantly in Iraq over the past few years, although there has been a spike of violence — particularly assassinations — in recent weeks. It’s unclear what has caused the increase.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi Parliament voted to pay $400 million to Americans who said they were tortured by Saddam Hussein’s regime during the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Many of the victims were working in oil fields in Kuwait at the time.

The payments are part of settlement with the victims that Iraqi and American officials negotiated last year.

Iraqi officials said that by paying the victims, the Iraqi government would be prevented from similar suits in the future, which could cost the government significantly more money.

“If Iraq did not pay this settlement it would face major problems,” said Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, adding that the country’s profits from oil and other sectors would have been exposed to lawsuits if the government did not reach the agreement with the victims.