Militants kill 17 Iraqis in attack on bus

GUNMEN ambushed a bus full of Iraqis working for the US military, killing 17 civilians and wounding 13 in Tikrit yesterday, while a car bomb and a gun attack killed four members of the Iraqi security forces elsewhere in northern Iraq.

The violence was the latest in a string of deadly attacks targeting Iraqi forces and others allied with the US military that have killed at least 68 Iraqis since Friday. The surge in bloodshed has come despite major US offensives last month to suppress guerrillas ahead of elections set for January 30.

Meanwhile, a former military spokesman in Iraq said the latest pictures showing apparent abuse of Iraqi prisoners were the acts of an isolated few but will be used by some to try to tarnish the entire US military.