Tensions following a firefight in disputed Tuz Khormato continued to rise as the central government sent more troops into the region. Meanwhile, at least three people were killed and 26 more were wounded in fresh violence.

The Iraqi government reinforced army troops in the Tuz Khormato area, but ordered them to avoid further increasing agitation in the area. Kurdish Peshmerga forces also strengthened their numbers along this heavily Kurdish part of Iraq. The escalation began several days ago when two Arab men refused to pay a local vendor for gasoline, and the accusations led to a firefight at a politician’s home. Both the Kurdish and central governments claim this oil-rich and ethnically diverse region. In the past, U.S. troops were on hand to defuse tensions. This time, however, the U.S. government is only involved from a distance.

In Kirkuk, a bomb targeting the local head of the Shi’ite Endowment left 19 wounded when it exploded. A roadside bomb killed a police official and his brother.

A sticky bomb wounded five civilians in Qayara.

A girl was shot and wounded in Hilla.

In Hamza, a bomb wounded a soldier.

An al-Qaeda suspect was killed in northern Wassit province, while attempting to escape.

An engineer was kidnapped in Rawa.

A car bomb was dismantled in Tikrit. A communications tower was blown up.

Read more by Margaret Griffis

• Twenty Killed in Attacks Focused on Iraqi Security Forces – May 23rd, 2013
• 31 Killed in Iraq, Including 12 Slaughtered in a Baghdad Brothel – May 22nd, 2013
• Sixty Killed, 132 Wounded in Ongoing Iraq Carnage – May 21st, 2013
• Monday Mayhem: 133 Killed, 283 Wounded in Iraq – May 20th, 2013
• Iraqi Police Targeted As Attacks Claim 44 Lives – May 19th, 2013