(VOVworld) – At least 35 people were killed and 60 wounded in two suicide bombings at a holy Shi’ite shrine in Salahuddin province, Iraq, on Thursday.

The scene of a car bomb attack at Karada district, Iraq. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)

Security sources said a group of gunmen in military uniforms attacked the shrine of Sayyid Mohammed in the town of Balad, 80 kilometers north of Baghdad, and two suicide bombers detonated explosives at the shrine. The gunmen held a number of Shi’ite pilgrims hostage inside the shrine, but security forces freed the hostages after a fierce clash and killed all the attackers.

The gunfight caused significant damage to the shrine and burned down several adjacent buildings. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks.