Car bomb blast kills three in central Baghdad: medics

A car bomb attack on a traffic police compound in central Baghdad Friday killed at least three people and wounded seven, security and medical sources said. The blast took place in Karrada, a neighbourhood that has been repeatedly targeted in recent years. "At least three people were killed and seven wounded," a hospital official told AFP. The toll was confirmed by a police official who said several policemen were among the victims. One of the deadliest bombings to hit Karrada occurred in July 2016, when a suicide truck bomb explosion set teeming shopping arcades ablaze and killed more than 320 people. Nearly all suicide attacks are claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group, which is defending its last major Iraqi bastion of Mosul against a massive operation launched by security forces last October. It was not immediately clear however whether Friday's attack, which occurred shortly before 11:00 pm (2000 GMT), was a suicide blast.