Two car bombs, one of them driven by a suicide attacker, exploded on Saturday at police stations in a pair of towns near Baghdad, killing at least 16 people, most of them policemen, United States and Iraqi officials said.
The first blast occurred in Baqouba, about 60km northeast of Baghdad. Minutes later, a suicide driver exploded his car at the gate of the police station in Khan Bani Saad, a crowded market town about 20km south of Baqouba on the road to Baghdad.
Lieutenant Hussein Hazem said six officers died in the Baqouba explosion, which left a large hole at the entrance to the building.
He said at least 10 civilians were hurt.
Captain Ryan McCormick of the Fourth Infantry Division said the Khan Bani Saad explosion killed six policemen and three civilians apart from the suicide driver. Iraqi police said one of the dead was a five-year-old girl. Ten people were injured, McCormick said.
McCormick said a police guard fired on the approaching vehicle but could not prevent the blast. He said there were no US or other coalition casualties.
There have been five vehicle bombings in Iraq since Wednesday, mostly targeting Iraqis who support the coalition.
A bomb on Wednesday night exploded at the home of a pro-US sheik in Ramadi. On Thursday a blast occurred at the offices of a US-allied Kurdish political party Kirkuk. Late on Friday, a truck blew up near the office of a British demining company in Irbil.
Khan Bani Saad and Baqouba are part of the so-called Sunni Triangle north and west of the capital that has seen fierce resistance to the US-led occupation.
In recent weeks, insurgents have increasingly targeted Iraqis collaborating with the occupation authorities, including police, government officials and community leaders.
At the Fourth Infantry Division headquarters in Tikrit, Lieutenant Colonel Steven Russell, a battalion commander, said US troops have been warned to expect more bombings at the end of the Muslim holy month Ramadan, which is expected to draw to a close early next week. — Sapa-AP