Terror attacks take 50 lives in Southern Iraq, many more wounded

"The total death toll of the victims reached 50 persons, while 87 others were wounded," the health department said in a statement.

At a roadside restaurant near Nasiriya, the capital of the Dhiqar province, gunmen stormed inside the property and opened fire, Iraqi interior ministry spokesman Brigadier General Saad Maan told the BBC.

Shortly after, a car bomb was exploded at a nearby checkpoint, killing at least four Iranian citizens according to one report.

The militants were supposedly dressed in uniform as members of Hashd- al-Shaabi, a predominately Shia group known to fight alongside Iraqi forces against the so-called Islamic State.

IS claimed responsibility for the attacks on the website for its news agency, Amaq.

-- More to follow --