Turkish security contractor killed in blast in Iraq's north

BAGHDAD - Agence France-Presse

AP Photo

A provincial police officer in Iraq says a roadside bomb has killed one security contractor and wounded three others working for a Turkish security company in the country's north.

Col. Badkar Shokur says the bomb exploded in the morning as a two-vehicle convoy was traveling in the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, 290 kilometers north of Baghdad Shokur says the four victims were Iraqis working for a Turkish company providing security for a Turkish construction project.

Security contractors are among the favorite targets for al-Qaeda-linked insurgents who seek to undermine government efforts to attract foreign companies to Iraq help in post-war reconstruction.

Six months after the withdrawal of the last American troops, Iraq's divided government is struggling to provide security and basic services such as electricity.