A car bomb went off in a busy area in downtown Baghdad on Thursday, killing a civilian and wounding 15 others, an Interior Ministry source said.

A parked explosive-packed car detonated at about 11:20 a.m. ( 0720 GMT) near the Shorjah commercial area, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

He said that a civilian was killed and 15 others wounded in the blast while several nearby shops and buildings were damaged.

Earlier, two people were killed, including a police officer, and 11 others wounded, including five policemen when a roadside bomb hit a passing police patrol in the Sakhrah intersection on the Palestine Street in eastern Baghdad, according to a ministry source.

Violence has persisted in infesting Iraq despite the formation of a new national unity government in the war-torn country in late May.

Source: Xinhua