Almost two-dozen Iraqis were killed in an ambush in Anbar province, where uniformed gunmen attacked two busloads of pilgrims. At least 30 Iraqis were killed and 23 more were wounded in this and other attacks across the country. Meanwhile, the guerilla war between the Kurdistan Workers Party (P.P.K.) and Turkey took another five lives.

Gunmen at a fake checkpoint near Nikhaib intersection in Anbar province stopped two buses carrying Iraqi pilgrims. The women were forced off a bus and the men were transported a few kilometers away where the 22 of them were killed. Security forces found the women by the side of the road hours later and a search for the men lead to their bodies. One of the survivors said that the gunmen had been wearing military uniforms. The group was traveling between the holy city of Karbala and the Sayyida Zainab shrine in Damascus, Syria. At the height of sectarian violence, fake checkpoints such as this were a common occurrence.

In Baghdad, a blast at the Lord-Mayor’s office killed one employee and wounded two others. Three people were wounded in a bombing at a liquor store on Abu Nidhal Street.

A blast in Falluja killed two people and wounded four others.

In Mosul, seven people were wounded when a bomb targeting police exploded. Another blast wounded a policeman. A beheaded man’s body was found.

Gunmen killed a cleric in Baquba.

In Muqdadiya, a woman was shot to death.

The body of a man bearing gunshot wounds to the head was discovered in Hilla. In a nearby village, another body was found.

A roadside bomb in Buhriz blasted a bus, wounding two people, including a Sahwa member.

Two people were wounded in a roadside bomb in Iskandariya. A second blast left no casualties.

Gunmen in Taza wounded a farmer.

A blast targeting police in Riyadh wounded a civilian instead.

Suspected Kurdish rebels attacked a police station and paramilitary police headquarters in Şemdinli, Turkey, killing five people and wounding 10 others. A Kurdish news agency reported that the civilian deaths were from crossfire in the two-hour-clash that followed the initial attack.

Read more by Margaret Griffis

• Nine Killed As Iraqi President Demands End to Political Squabbles – May 26th, 2012
• Iraqi Political Coalitions Still Fighting over Maliki’s Right To Lead – May 25th, 2012
• Talabani Threatens To Resign over Political Tensions – May 24th, 2012
• Iraq Bus Bombing Kills Lebanese and Iranian Pilgrims – May 23rd, 2012
• 14 Iraqis Killed As National Alliance Is Asked To Select A Replacement PM – May 22nd, 2012