World Bulletin / News Desk

Five Iraqi soldiers were killed and 12 civilians injured on Thursday in a car bombing that rocked Tuz Khormato town in the northern Saladin province, a security official said.

"An explosives-laden car was parked near a local restaurant on the highway between Tuz Khormato and Suleiman Beik district when it went off, killing five soldiers in their vehicle," Police Commander Shalal Abdoul told Anadolu Agency.

All the injured had been in the restaurant at the time of the blast, the official said.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the bombing.

The volatile town of Tuz Khormato, which is disputed between the Baghdad government and the Kurdish administration in northern Iraq, has recently seen a series of bombings that have claimed scores of lives.

Iraq in general has seen a spike in violence in recent months, with bombings and assassinations killing hundreds of people.

Most attacks go unclaimed, but authorities usually point the finger at al-Qaeda-linked rebel groups.