12 killed in car bomb in Baghdad

At least 12 people were killed and 47 others wounded in separate bomb explosions in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Thursday, a police source said.
Seven civilians were killed and 31 others injured when a car bomb exploded near a market in Shiite-predominant Sadr City district in northern Baghdad. The huge blast destroyed several shops and damaged several nearby cars, the source said on condition of anonymity.
In a separate incident, a bomb exploded in central Baghdad, killing three people and wounding nine others.
A civilian was killed and five others wounded when twin bombs went off near the Sinak bridge in central Baghdad.
In addition, an Iraqi army soldier was killed and two others injured when a roadside bomb targeted their patrol in the Zaidan area, 20 km west of Baghdad.
Those attacks came amid a week-long militant offensive in which insurgents have seized vast territories in northern Iraq.
Iraq is witnessing some of its worst violence in recent years. According to the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq, a total of about 9000 Iraqis were killed in 2013, the highest annual death toll in years.