Baghdad Car Bomb Kills Four

A car bomb in the center of a predominantly Shiite city south of the Iraqi capital killed four people and wounded 11 others on Thursday, officials said.

The blast occurred at around 10:00 am (0700 GMT) in Hilla, capital of Babil province and around 95 kilometers (60 miles) from Baghdad, a medic and a police officer said. Both spoke on condition of anonymity.

Violence in Iraq is dramatically lower than its peak in 2006 and 2007 when the country was in the throes of a brutal sectarian war, but Sunni militants still carry out attacks in a bid to target the Shiite-led government, its institutions and supporters.

The latest deaths came after figures last week showed a sharp decline in attacks in October, with the number of people killed the lowest monthly total since June.