Iraq car bombing kills dozens north of Baghdad Published duration 21 November 2013

At least 25 people have been killed in a car bomb attack north-east of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, officials say.

The blast happened in a market in the town of Saadiya, in the religiously mixed province of Diyala.

The attack comes a day after at least 29 people were killed and dozens wounded in a series of bombings across the capital.

Sectarian violence has surged across Iraq in recent months, reaching its highest level since 2008.

The bomb went off at about midday (09:00 GMT) in a neighbourhood populated mostly by Shia Kurds, officials told the French news agency AFP.

Witnesses told police that the bomb was on board a truck of vegetables.

No group has claimed responsibility for the violence, but Sunni militants linked to al-Qaeda often carry out such attacks to undermine confidence in the Shia-led government.

Officials have voiced concern that the conflict in neighbouring Syria has emboldened these militant groups.

According to figures released by the UN at the beginning of this month, a total of 979 Iraqis were killed and another 1,902 were wounded in acts of terrorism and violence in October.

There are fears that the violence could escalate to the levels seen in 2006-2007, when tens of thousands died.