Sepcial Report: Tension accelerates in Iraq

    BAGHDAD, July 2 (Xinhua) -- A suicide bomber drove his car into a security checkpoint in a Baghdad western district on Sunday, causing casualties, an Interior Ministry source said.

    "A attacker rammed his explosive-packed car through the barricades of an Iraqi security checkpoint in Ghazaliya neighborhood and blew it up at about 4:25 p.m. (1225 GMT)," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

    The source confirmed there were casualties in the attack, but he said it was not immediately clear as the police commando members at the scene blocked the area.

    Earlier in the day, three parking car bombs rocked the Iraqi capital, killing a civilian and wounding a total of 26 others, including a police chief.

    Violence has mounted despite the formation of a new unity government in the war-torn country after three years of the U.S.-led invasion. Enditem