At least 18 people were killed and 36 others injured in attacks on Friday in Iraq, including a car bombing near a mosque in the capital of Baghdad, Interior Ministry and police sources said.

The car bomb exploded near the Sunni mosque in northern Baghdad as worshipers were leaving Friday Prayers. At least five of them were killed and 30 others wounded, an Interior Ministry source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The blast also damaged several cars nearby, he added.

Meanwhile, a total of nine policemen were killed and six others wounded in clashes between armed men and police in Mosul, some 400 km northwest of Baghdad, a local police source told Xinhua.

The armed men had attacked several police checkpoints around the city, he said.

Moreover, four gunmen were killed when they attacked a checkpoint belonging to the Iraqi army in western Mosul, the source added.

Violence is still common in Iraq despite the dramatic decrease since its peak in 2006 and 2007 when the country was engulfed in sectarian killings.

The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq said Thursday that the death toll among Iraqis from violence in April has hit its highest level since 2008, with 712 people killed in violence across the country. Endi

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