BAGHDAD (Xinhua) – Twelve people were killed in floods caused by torrential rain in northern Iraq, governor of Erbil province Omed Khoshnaw said Sunday. The torrents swept 15 areas in Erbil, a total of 2,509 homes and 867 civilian cars were damaged by the floods, Khoshnaw said in a press conference in Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. “The material damage is estimated at 21 billion Iraqi dinars (approximately 15 million U.S. dollars), in addition to significant damage to agricultural lands, sewage networks, streets, and sidewalks,” Khoshnaw said.