BAQUBA: A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-rigged vehicle on Thursday near car dealerships in Baladruz, close to the Iraqi city of Baquba, killing 13 people, police and a doctor said.

The blast in Baladruz, north of Baghdad, also wounded 25 people, the sources said.

The bombing comes as security forces and tribesmen battled Al-Qaeda-linked militants who took control of parts of two cities in Anbar province, west of the capital.

Violence in Iraq has reached a level not seen since 2008, when the country was just emerging from a brutal period of sectarian killings.

(AFP)