Baghdad, February 24 (RHC)-- Bomb blasts and shootings across Iraq have left 17 people dead as violence rages on in the country, officials say. Sunday’s deadliest attack took place on a highway between the capital Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul.

Three police officers and four detainees, who had been arrested during a raid, were killed after a bomb exploded there. In Mosul itself, seven people died in six separate shootings. Among the dead were the brother of a provincial councilor, a health directorate employee and three members of security forces.

A roadside bomb exploded near bicycle shops in Baghdad’s Sadr City, killing at least two people and injuring seven more. At least three others were wounded by another bombing in the Hurriyah area of Baghdad.

Iraq has witnessed a surge in deadly attacks including bombings and shootings in recent months. The latest incidents of violence came at a time when Iraqi troops, backed by local Sunni tribesmen, are fighting al-Qaeda-affiliated militants in the country’s western regions, including Anbar Province.