5 killed in car bombing in Iraq's Baghdad

At least five people were killed and seven others wounded in a car bomb explosion in eastern Baghdad, a police source said on Thursday.

The blast occurred in the morning when a booby-trapped car ripped through a popular marketplace at the predominantly Shiite neighborhood of al-Obeidi in eastern Baghdad, according to a statement issued by Brig. Saad Maan, spokesman of Baghdad Operations Command, which is responsible on security of the Iraqi capital.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) militant group, in most cases, is believed responsible for bombings targeting Iraqi security forces as well as crowded areas, including markets, cafes and mosques across the country.

The attack came amid a major offensive by Iraqi security forces, backed by anti-IS international coalition, to drive out IS militants from their last major stronghold in and around Mosul.

Many blame the current chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups, such as the IS, on the U.S., which invaded and occupied Iraq in March 2003.

source: Xinhua