A suicide car bomb struck a police checkpoint in the volatile Diyala province, northeast of Baghdad, on Thursday, killing eight people and wounding three others, provincial police source said.
"A suicide bomber drove his explosive-laden car into a police checkpoint outside the town of Hibhib, some 60 km northeast of Baghdad," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.
The blast killed four policemen in the checkpoint and wounded three others, the source said.
Four civilians from a family were also killed in the attack, he said.
The source identified the civilian victims as the head of the town's communications center and his family, who were killed in their car while crossing the checkpoint.
Several other cars were also damaged in the blast, the source said, adding that the death toll could rise.
Diyala province, which stretches from Baghdad to the Iranian border to the east, has long been the hotbed of insurgency and sectarian violence since the U.S.-led invasion broke out in 2003.
Since June 19, more than 10,000 troops, including 2,000 Iraqi soldiers and policemen, backed by U.S. aircraft, have been carrying out a massive assault to hunt for the al-Qaida militants operating in the volatile province.
Source: Xinhua
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