A car bomb exploded at an Iraqi police checkpoint south of Baghdad today, killing seven people and wounding 12, police said.
The attack occurred about 50 km south of Baghdad near the town of Haswa, the police department in nearby Hilla said. The explosives-packed vehicle had been left by the side of the road, near the checkpoint, and was detonated remotely.
All of those killed were civilians, the police said. Three of the wounded were policemen.
Iraqi police and army checkpoints are frequently targeted by insurgents, who see Iraqi security forces as allied to US-led forces and dismiss them as collaborators.
The area south of Baghdad, in and around Hilla, has been dubbed "the triangle of death" by US forces because of the frequency of insurgent attacks. Iraqi forces have set up multiple checkpoints in the area to try to stem violence.
Yesterday, a car bomb exploded at a police checkpoint near the National Theatre in central Baghdad, killing at least five people and wounding more than 20, police said.
In southern Iraq, which has been more stable than central regions, a roadside bomb blew up as a British consular convoy was passing, killing two British security guards.