Suicide bomber strikes near Iraqi government

Thirteen people died and 15 were injured in a suicide attack at an entrance to the Green Zone in Baghdad that houses Iraq’s interim government and foreign embassies, a hospital official said.

The official, who asked not to be identified, said all the casualties from the bombing had been taken to the Yarmouk Hospital in western Baghdad.

The US military confirmed a car bomb exploded near one of the Green Zone gates, but provided no further details.

The blast occurred when a vehicle that had been waiting in line to enter the zone at its western Harthiyah gate exploded as it drove up to the checkpoint, Iraqi police said.

Fifteen other cars were destroyed in the blast.