9 September 2012 Last updated at 03:37 ET
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At least 18 people have been killed in attacks in Iraq targeting the security forces.
In the deadliest single incident, 11 soldiers were killed in a shooting and bombing attack on an army checkpoint north of Baghdad.
Another bomb killed seven police recruits near the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, reports say.
Sunni insurgents linked to al-Qaeda have been blamed for much of the recent violence in Iraq.
The bomb near Kirkuk targeted police who were applying for jobs with the state-run Northern Oil Company, according to police spokesmen.
The latest violence comes only days after eight people were killed on attacks on Shia Muslim places of worship in Kirkuk.
Although violence has decreased since its peak in 2006 and 2007, attacks have escalated again after the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq in December 2011 and amid increasing political and sectarian tensions.
Continue reading the main story
At least 18 people have been killed in attacks in Iraq targeting the security forces.
In the deadliest single incident, 11 soldiers were killed in a shooting and bombing attack on an army checkpoint north of Baghdad.
Another bomb killed seven police recruits near the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, reports say.
Sunni insurgents linked to al-Qaeda have been blamed for much of the recent violence in Iraq.
The bomb near Kirkuk targeted police who were applying for jobs with the state-run Northern Oil Company, according to police spokesmen.
The latest violence comes only days after eight people were killed on attacks on Shia Muslim places of worship in Kirkuk.
Although violence has decreased since its peak in 2006 and 2007, attacks have escalated again after the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq in December 2011 and amid increasing political and sectarian tensions.