Originally published on October 17, 2013

At least 15 people were killed in a bomb attack in northern Iraq on Thursday, when a suicide bomber driving a truck packed with explosives blew himself up in a village mainly populated by Iraq's Shabak minority.

The attack took place in the village of Mwafaqiya in Nineveh province at 6am. The suicide truck bomber reportedly detonated explosives amidst houses in the village. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack.

According to Reuters: "Sunni Islamist militants have in the past targeted Shabaks, who are predominantly Shi'ite, and warned them to leave the area.

"Sunni Islamist and other insurgents including an al-Qaeda affiliate have been regaining ground this year in an onslaught against Iraq's Shi'ite-led government and its allies.

"Al-Qaeda views Shi'ite Muslims as non-believers.

"More than 6,000 people have been killed in acts of violence across the country this year, according to monitoring group Iraq Body Count."

Last month, a suicide bomb attack targeted at a Shabak funeral in the same area killed 21 people.