Seven Iraqi policemen were killed and nine people were wounded, including three civilians, when a suicide car bomb hit a police patrol north of Baghdad today, medical and army sources said.
The attack took place in the city of Baquba, a mixed Shia and Sunni Arab city 65 km (40 miles) north of the capital. Baquba is the capital of Diyala province which has seen considerable violence linked to sectarian tensions in the run-up to December 15th elections.
A U.S. soldier stands guard beside the destroyed Iraqi police car in which seven policemen were killed
At the end of October, 30 people were killed and dozens wounded by a suicide bomber who lured customers to a truck laden with dates before detonating a massive charge in a small Shia town near Baquba.
Iraqi police and army are a frequent target for Sunni Arab insurgents battling the Shia - and Kurdish-led government and its US backers.
Agencies