 A car bomb followed by a mortar attack struck near the compound of one of Iraq's most powerful Shi'ite politicians on Monday, killing at least three civilians and wounding seven, police said. A huge plume of white smoke rose into the sky and sirens wailed after the blast occurred just before noon behind a gas station near the offices of Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of Iraq's largest Shiite party, Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, or SIIC. Police said it was not yet known if the car was parked or being driven by a suicide attacker. |