SALAH AL-DIN / Aswat al-Iraq: The death toll of the suicide bombing in Tikrit reached 54 dead and 137 wounded, a police source said on Tuesday."A suicide bomber wearing a vest packed with explosives and ball bearings attacked Iraqi police recruits on Tuesday in central Tikrit, killing 54 and injuring 137," the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
"The attack took place outside a police recruiting center in Tikrit where Iraqi men were lining up hoping to get a job," he added.
The attack was the bloodiest in Iraq since Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki won support in December for his reappointment, ending a nine-month stalemate that followed a March election.
A police source in the main hospital of the city, said it was overwhelmed. Mosques broadcast appeals for residents to donate blood.
"The hospital theater now is full of dead and wounded young people," the source noted.
Tikrit, the capital of Salah al-Din, is 175 km north of Baghdad.