Car Bomb Kills 14 in Northern Iraq

People rush to the scene after a car bomb exploded in central Baghdad. AlJazeera Photo

A car bomb exploded near the U.S. occupation base in northern Iraq on Tuesday, killing at least 11.

In Baghdad, a car bomb exploded outside the offices of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, killing three people and injuring 20, the occupation forces said. It was one of several blasts heard in the capital just after reports circulated that Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer, current head of the Iraqi Governing Council, had been selected as president of the interim government set to take power June 30.

Ambulances raced to the scene near the headquarters of the U.S.occupation forces, and U.S. occupation forces kept people back. TV video showed debris and a charred wall of a building.

Minutes earlier, another blast, followed by gunfire, sent a cloud 100 feet billowing into the dusty air hanging over the city. Coalition aircraft could be heard flying over Baghdad.

In Beiji, a roadside bomb exploded near the U.S.occupation forces base, killing 11 Iraqis — including seven members of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps — and wounding 23. Two U.S. 1st Infantry Division soldiers were wounded and evacuated to a combat hospital, together with 16 Iraqis who were hurt.

The Beiji blast occurred around 9 a.m. outside the gates of the 1st Infantry Division's forward operating base, Summerall, about 155 miles north of Baghdad, Capt. Bill Coppernoll said.

The Baghdad blast ripped through the building in the early afternoon, shortly after a party attended by hundreds of people. The event was intended to celebrate the founding of the PUK, which is seen as being close to the Americans.

Under the leadership of Jalal Talabani, the party represented one of the main anti-Saddam forces on Iraqi soil after the Gulf War. Fighters from the party backed American forces in last year's invasion.

Talabani, who holds a seat on the Governing Council, was not in the offices when the blast occurred, a party spokesman said.

Most of the injured were outside the offices and were struck by flying glass, said Lt. Col. Robert Campbell of the 38th Calvary Unit in the 1st Calvary Division.