MOSUL, Iraq, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- Insurgents have blown up the house of Iraqi Sunni Arab member of parliament in the city of Mosul, the capital of Nineveh province, a local official said on Tuesday.

    "The house of Hashim Yahiyah al-Taie, a lawmaker and member of the Iraqi Islamic Party, was destroyed when gunmen blew it up at about 8:00 p.m. (1700 GMT) on Monday," said Yahiyah Abed Mahjoob, a member of Nineveh provincial council, told Xinhua.

    The attack, which occurred in the Muthanna neighborhood in northern Mosul, also wounded several people and caused damages to nearby houses, Mahjoob said.

    The neighborhood is a stronghold for insurgents which witnesses almost daily bombings, killings and kidnapping, Mahjoob said.

    "The Iraqi security forces is demanded to protect civilians andtheir properties in the neighborhood and Mosul as well," he said.

    The Iraqi Islamic Party, headed by Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, condemned the attack on Tuesday and "urged the Iraqi government to ensure security in Mosul."

    Nineveh province, and its capital city Mosul, some 400 km north of Baghdad, is said to be one of the last strongholds of al-Qaida fighters in the war-torn country.

    The province has been the scene of a major security crackdown carried out by U.S. troops and Iraqi security forces aimed at uprooting al-Qaida militants and other anti-U.S. insurgent groups.