Bomb attacks in two Iraqi cities today have killed at least 20 people and injured around 60.
A suicide car bomber detonated his vehicle near a police academy in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk, killing at least 17 people and wounding. Police said the head of the bomber was found among the debris after the blast.
The death toll is expected could be higher with one local military offical saying dozens of peopple have been killed.
Kirkuk police chief Mr Turhan Mustafa said the blast from the 1,100 lb bomb had killed at least 14 policemen and three civilians.
Earlier, heavy fighting erupted near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul between US-led forces and insurgents today with at least eight people killed and 40 wounded, some of them children.
"Civilians are being brought in into the hospital. We expect the number of casualties to increase," a doctor said.
A US military helicopter was forced to land near the village of Tallafar, near Mosul, and the two crew members aboard the UH-58 were injured, a US spokesman said.
He could not say clear what forced the helicopter to land but it happened as fighting raged in the area.
Iraqi police sealed off the area after fighting erupted when Iraqi troops, backed by US forces, tried to conduct searches in the area, witnesses said.
Rebels waging a bloody insurgency against Iraq's interim government frequently launch attacks against US forces and Iraqi security forces in the key oil city.