Bomber kills 30 in Iraqi meeting

An Iraqi suicide bomber killed 30 people and wounded 110 in a tribal meeting today.

The blast in Youssifiyah, south of Baghdad, was the deadliest attack in Iraq since a suicide bomber killed 55 people at a cafe in Kirkuk on December 11.

Youssifiyah is in the Sunni-dominated region once known as the Triangle of Death because of its extreme violence. The bloodshed declined markedly in 2008, but violent rivalries persist throughout Iraq.

The bombing was at a meeting hall next to the home of Sheik Mohammed Abdullah Salih, head of the Sunni al-Garaqul tribe.

Police said the sheik had invited tribal senior figures and other members to lunch. The bomber was an outsider who managed to get into the house, police said.