Seven dead in attack on Iraqi television station

A car bomb explosion at the office of Dubai-based Al Arabiya television in Baghdad has killed seven people and wounded 16.

The car bomb went off just outside the station's office in western Baghdad.

Iraqi authorities could not immediately confirm the toll flashed by Al Arabiya during a news broadcast.

Ms Najwa Qassem, senior Arabiya correspondent in Baghdad, said the blast had started a fire and damaged the building. She said a suspected car bomb had exploded in the parking lot but could not be sure the television station was the intended target.

The station is majority Saudi-owned. It has often been attacked on Web sites used by Islamist militant groups for its perceived pro-Western stance in the Arab world.