A car bomb in Iraq's western Anbar province killed seven civilians and wounded 20 others today, as Iraq struggles to end years of sectarian violence after a pivotal national vote.
The bomb exploded in a car parked about 150 metres from an army patrol in the city of Falluja, some 50km west of Baghdad, police said.
Anbar had been relatively quiet since Sunni Muslim tribal leaders in 2006 turned on Sunni Islamist groups like al-Qaeda, who had once dominated the vast desert province.
Overall violence in Iraq has fallen in the last two years, but insurgents continue to strike in Anbar and other restive areas such as northern Nineveh province.
Last week's vote is seen as a crucial test for Iraq's young democracy, and will help decide whether the country can avoid relapse into violence as US forces prepare to withdraw by the end of 2011.
Reuters