A SUCIDE bomber who blew himself up in a major football



stadium has killed 26 people and wounded 71, security officials have said.

The bombing took place during a match in the city of Iskanderiyah, near Baghdad, Iraq.

ISIS has claimed responsibilty for the attack, according to their afiliated news agency Amaq.

The bomber is said to have struck as players took part in a trophy presentation at the end of the game.




The group, otherwise known as Daesh, has been waging a campaign of suicide bombings in and around the capital as Iraqi forces and their allies battle the militants in the north and west of the country.

The news comes just hours after U.S. officials confirmed Haji Imam, second in command of the death cult, had been taken out in an airstrike over Syria