Nine people were killed on Tuesday in a series of gun and bomb attacks in central regions of Iraq, security officials said, days before the country is set to hold elections. Three civilians were killed and four injured when a car bomb exploded near al-Kut, 180 kilometres north of the capital Baghdad. In Tuz Khurmato, 170 kilometres north of Baghdad, a police major died when he set off a booby trap bomb on his car. In Duluiyah, 80 kilometres north of the capital, one soldier was killed and two injured in an attack by gunmen. One person was killed and five injured in a car bomb attack on a police patrol in Baghdad, according to a report of DPA. In al-Hillah, 100 kilometres south of the capital, one soldier was killed in a bomb attack. In a separate incident in the area, security forces said they killed two militants in a firefight--
