Suicide car bomb kills 5 in central Baghdad
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-07-25 11:19

A suicide bomber blew up a minivan packed with explosives at a checkpoint near a central Baghdad hotel on Monday.

Police sources, citing initial reports, said the attack had killed at least five people and wounded 10.

The unusually large explosion as dawn broke was followed by the sound of shooting, Reuters journalists nearby said.

Black smoke could be seen rising from near the area of the Sadir hotel, which houses some foreign contractors and is close to the central Firdoz square.

Suicide car bombs have become the most lethal tactic in Iraq's insurgency. A suicide truck bomb packed with 500 pounds (220 kg) of explosives on Saturday killed at least 22 people, the worst attack in more than a week.