Baghdad: Three more dead as ISIS continue suicide bombing campaign

ISIS have claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb in Baghdad that killed three and wounded 27 on Tuesday morning.

The blast occurred less than one mile from a protest held by supporters of the influential Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to demand political reforms in Iraq. The explosion hit a group of workers in Tayaran Square.

The hardline Sunni militants have also claimed responsibility for a suicide attack at a football match in Iskandariya, south of Baghdad, last Friday.

Iraqi officials said the explosion killed at least 41 and injured about 105. However an ISIS statement said more than 60 died. The attack, which struck as the trophies were given out at the end of the game, was aimed at gathering of Shi'ite militias known collectively as Hashd al-Shaabi, ISIS said.

Bombings outside of ISIS' territory in northern and western Iraq and northern Syria have become more commonplace in recent weeks.

Earlier this month at least 60 people were killed earlier in an attack further south, in Hilla, when an explosives-laden fuel tanker slammed into an Iraqi security checkpoint.

European analysts have suggested the surge in attacks as a sign of a shift in ISIS' policy after losses in Iraq and Syria mean its territory is shrinking. However analysts in Baghdad have said the group has long staged a campaign of indiscriminate suicide bombings. They see recent attacks as a continuation of this tactic.

Additional reporting by Reuters.

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