UPDATE - Floods kill 9, damage hundreds of homes in north Iraq

CHANGES HEADLINE, ADDS DEATH TOLL

By Idris Okuducu

SALADIN, Iraq (AA) – Flash floods in northern Iraq have killed at least nine people, including women and children, and severely damaged thousands of homes, officials said Friday.

According to local health and security authorities, heavy flooding inundated the town of Al-Shirqat in Saladin province northwest of Baghdad following days of heavy rainfall in the area.

Local officials, meanwhile, reported that as many as 300 homes have been heavily damaged by the floods, especially in Nineveh and Kirkuk provinces.

Several countries in the region -- including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Jordan -- have been pounded by torrential rains in recent days that have left scores dead.