BAGHDAD: Iraqi officials say a car bomb has killed a policeman in the western city of Ramadi.

Security officials say the parked car exploded around 7:30 am (local time) Sunday near a police patrol in a main street in the center of the city.

An official in the nearby Ramadi hospital said five other policemen were seriously wounded. Two passers-by were also wounded, he said.

All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.

Ramadi is the capital of Anbar province and used to be a stronghold of al Qaeda. Recently, local militias have managed to bring a measure of calm to the city and province, part of a general drop in violence seen across the country.