Government in northern Iraq city orders coffee shops closed after attack that killed 39

BAGHDAD – Authorities in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk have ordered all cafes to be shut down a day after a suicide attack killed 39 people when a bomber detonated his explosives in a crowded coffee shop.

Police chief Maj. Gen. Jamal Tahir said on Saturday that his troops cannot secure dozens of teahouses and coffee shops scattered across the city. Kirkuk is 290 kilometers (180 miles) north of Baghdad.

Tahir says he has not yet decided when the coffee shops will be able to open again.

Iraq is being rocked by its deadliest and most sustained wave of bloodshed in half a decade.

More than 2,600 people have been killed since the start of April, raising fears that the country is once again edging toward the brink of civil war.