Special report:Tension escalates in Iraq     

    BAGHDAD, May 1 (Xinhua) -- Up to 16 people have been killed and42 others injured by a suicide bombing at a funeral in the town of Khalis, some 75 km north of Baghdad, the U.S. military said on Tuesday.

    "The toll rose to 16 and 42 people wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a funeral in the town (on Monday)," the military said in a statement obtained by Xinhua.

    A local police source put the toll on Monday's attack at 15 people killed and at least 21 others injured.

    The blast occurred shortly after 7:00 p.m. (1500 GMT) when a suicide bomber wearing an explosive-belt blew himself among mourners gathered at a funeral in Khalis, a predominant Shiite town in the volatile Diyala province.

    Khalis, a town plagued by sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shiites, has witnessed a surge of violence recently.

    On March 29, four car bombs rocked the town, leaving at least 43 people killed and 68 others injured.