A suicide attacker detonated a bomb in a predominantly Shia Muslim district of eastern Baghdad yesterday, killing at least 11 people and wounding 39 others, security and medical sources said, the third such blast in four days in the capital.
Islamic State said it was responsible for the explosion which went off near a cinema in Baghdad al-Jadida. Amaq news agency, which supports the group, said the bomber wore a suicide vest and targeted Iraqi security forces.
The blast set fire to at least five other vehicles on a busy commercial street during evening rush hour, the sources said.
Security has gradually improved in Baghdad, which was the target of daily bombings a decade ago, though attacks against the security forces and Shia civilians are still frequent.
At least 12 people were killed on Saturday in two separate car bomb attacks targeting security forces, while a suicide attack at a Shi’ite mosque following Friday prayers left nine others dead. Islamic State said it was behind both of them.
The rise of the militants, who are fighting government forces over control of swathes of northern and western Iraq, has exacerbated a sectarian conflict, mostly between Shias and Sunnis, that emerged after the 2003 US-led invasion.