Three bombs rock Iraqi city of Kirkuk

An Iraqi security official says three bombs have exploded in the northern city of Kirkuk killing a woman and wounding 18 others.

Brig. Gen. Ali Kamal initially said the blasts occurred late on Friday night in three different places. He added that two of them did not inflict any casualties.

Then on Saturday, Kamal said  the blast in al-Quds street in central Kirkuk killed the woman and wounded 18 others.

It was not clear who was behind the blasts but the oil-rich city was targeted in the past in attacks carried out by the Islamic State group.

Iraq declared victory in December over the Islamic State, which had seized control of nearly a third of the country in 2014. However, the group continues to carry out attacks and bombings in Baghdad and other parts of Iraq.

Last October, Iraqi forces - backed by Shia-dominated Hashd al-Shaabi [Popular Mobilisation militias] - ousted Kurdish Peshmerga fighters from Kirkuk city. The Kurds had taken control of the town in 2014, in a successful bid to prevent Islamic State group militants from capturing it.