Washington, DC - The United States strongly condemns the continued terrorist attacks in Iraq, including the suicide car bomb attacks today in Basrah and the Iraqi Kurdistan Region in front of the Erbil Provincial Council Building that took a number of innocent lives. We extend our condolences to the families of the victims and hope for a rapid recovery for those who were injured.

The Iraqi people are determined to stand against the violence and horrific ideology of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and have successfully reclaimed their territory from ISIL at Mosul Dam, Rabiya, Zumar, and other areas, including in recent days at Bayji. As Iraqi Security Forces continue to gain strength and ISIL loses territory, ISIL will continue to resort to cowardly attacks of killing civilians and other desperate measures to try to maintain its reign of fear and prove its relevance.

The United States is committed to working with the Government of Iraq and our coalition partners to end this terrorist scourge. The United States will continue to stand with the Iraqi people, as they take back their country from these violent extremists, and promote a unified, federal, pluralistic, and democratic state, as envisioned in the Iraqi Constitution.