Gunmen killed 21 workers of a textile plant in Mosul in northern Iraq on their way home on Sunday, local police told Xinhua.

"Unidentified gunmen attacked a car carrying workers from a textile plant in Mosul, killing 21 people," the source said on condition of anonymity, adding the workers were en route home east of Mosul.

All of the victims belonged to Iraq's Yazidi religious minority, which has about 500,000 faithfuls, the source said.

The Yazidis are primarily ethnic Kurd and most live near Mosul in Iraq.

Mosul, 400 km north of Baghdad, has witnessed bloody attacks in recent days.