Five injured in hotel bomb attack

An apparent car bomb exploded near an hotel in central Baghdad today, and a US military officer said five Iraqis were injured, one critically.

It was thought the target may have been the Australian Embassy nearby.

The blast was 50 yards from the Karma Hotel, where foreign journalists and UN weapons inspectors used to stay before the war that ousted Saddam Hussein.

Colonel Mike Murray said five Iraqis were injured, including a 10-year-old boy who was critically hurt.

The explosion was in the Jadiriyah district about 100 yards from the Australian embassy. Iraqi police speculated the embassy may have been the target and the car detonated prematurely.