Two killed in Baghdad car bomb attack

A parked car bomb struck a Shiite slum in Baghdad today, killing at least two people and wounding three.

The explosion occurred near an ice cream shop in Sadr City, a sprawling district in eastern Baghdad, said police Capt. Sattar Jabar, adding that at least two civilians were killed and three wounded.

It was the second such blast in as many days in the neighbourhood. A parked minivan packed with explosives also exploded at a busy outdoor market there yesterday, killing seven people and wounding 22.

Elsewhere, gunmen killed police Maj. Rahim al-Alousi as he was standing near his house in Hit, 85 miles west of Baghdad.

Another policeman was killed during clashes between Iraqi police and insurgents in the northern city of Mosul, said police Capt. Ahmed Khalil.

Police also reported that a guard for the Iraqi trade minister was killed in a mistaken exchange of gunfire with an Australian security detail in Baghdad Mansour district, said police Lt. Thaer Mahmoud.