In a separate incident, Ali al-Daiyni, head of Diyala's provincial council, told Xinhua that a police force acted on intelligence reports and raided a safe house of a criminal gang and arrested their suspected leader, known as Amir (commander) of abduction.

The gang leader was wanted for involving in 38 kidnappings, murders, extortion and rape in various parts of the province, Daiyni said.

The incidents came despite dramatic decline in violent attacks in the country during the past few months, particularly after the Iraqi security forces dislodged the extremist Islamic State (IS) militants from all Iraqi areas.