BAGHDAD — A suicide bomber killed 11 people and wounded 20 at a Shi’a Muslim funeral in a city northeast of Baghdad on Tuesday, Dec. 10, police said, as Iraqi insurgents pursue a campaign of deadly attacks.

An Iraqi man carries the body of his son, who was killed by a car bomb attack, during a funeral in Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad December 9, 2013. Car bombs killed at least 39 people across Iraq on Sunday and wounded more than 120, mainly targeting busy commercial streets in and around the capital, police sources said. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani

The bombing took place in Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) from of the capital at a funeral for a group of Shi’a shepherds who had been killed by unidentified gunmen outside the city.

No one immediately claimed responsibility, but suicide bombings have been a favored tactic of insurgents linked to al Qaeda and who are widely blamed for this year’s surge in violence that has mostly targeted civilians.

Baquba has been hit by some of the deadliest attacks. Earlier this month a suicide bomber blew himself up at a funeral in a nearby town.

According to the United Nations, more than 8,000 people have been killed in Iraq in the first 11 months of 2013, meaning that this year may end up being the bloodiest since the peak of sectarian violence in 2006-07.