BAQUBA, Dec 7: A woman suicide bomber killed 16 people on Friday in the office of a group fighting Al Qaeda in central Iraq. The blast, which shook Muqdadiyah town near Baquba, killed at least 16 people and wounded 27, police and medical officials said.

“The explosion was caused when a female suicide bomber detonated her vest in the office of the local Awakening group,” said Baquba police officer Lt-Col Najim Al Soumaidaie.

Of those killed, 10 were from the group while 15 of its members were among the wounded, a security official said.

The attack came hours after a leader of another anti-Qaeda front and five of his bodyguards were killed near Mosul on Thursday night.

“Unidentified gunmen attacked sheikh Jabbar Al Jarba’s convoy, killing him and five of his guards,” said Brig-Gen Mohammed Al Waggaa, a police officer in Mosul. The attack occurred between Mosul and the town of Rabia, he said.

Al Sahwa or Awakening groups have sprung up across Iraq, comprising mainly tribal leaders who have accepted money from the US military -- on average about $300 a month -- in return for confronting Al Qaeda militants who attack civilians.

In another incident on Friday, a crude oil pipeline in northern Iraq was set ablaze after being bombed by militants, oil ministry spokesman Assem Jihad said.

Repairs at the site near Al Fatah west of Kirkuk were expected to be completed within a day and crude exports would not be affected, he said.—AFP