Blast at Funeral Kills 18 in Iraq [UPDATE]: 25 Now Dead, 90 Injured By Suicide Bomber At Shiite Mosque During Government Employee's Funeral

A bomb goes off during a funeral in Iraq killing at least 25 people. The funeral ceremony was held in a Shiite mosque when a suicide bomber erupted the blast at the Sayyid al-Shuhada mosque in Tuz Khormato.

Several mourners including provincial officials of a government employee who was killed in a drive-by shooting the day before were either injured or killed. Mayor Shalal Abdoul said at least 90 people were injured and 25 people were killed.

Yalmaz Ogolu, the owner of a television channel nearby city of Kirkuk had just left the funeral before the attack, "I heard a thunderous boom come from the mosque," he said. "Seconds later, I saw panicked people fleeing the mosque while others carried bodies and wounded people out." Ogolu added, "Police soon showed up and started shooting in the air," trying to disperse the frantic crowd in case of a second bomb.

U.S. troops evacuated Iraq almost a year ago, and the country has been trying to restore power ever since. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad called the attack cowardly for harming innocent people, including children, "The deliberate targeting of innocent civilians is cowardly and reprehensible. This attack is meant to incite others into violence and is harmful to the interests of all Iraqis," an embassy rep said.

Cause of the bombing and other attacks are coincided with the Sunni-led protests against Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Shiite-led government for prejudicial treatment of their sect.