Iraq bomber strikes Sunni militia

Civilians again suffered a heavy toll in Thursdays' suicide bombing

A suicide bomber has killed 13 Iraqis and a US soldier in an attack on a recruiting centre for local militias in Diyala province, north of Baghdad.

At least 10 people were also injured in the attack.

The bombing took place in the town of Qanan, 20km south of Diyala province's main city, Baquba.

Local militias manned by Sunni Arab Iraqis, backed and armed by the US military, have been taking on al-Qaeda in Iraq in many areas of the country.

The US Army said a man detonated a vest packed with explosives near a dismounted American patrol waiting to enter a building where a council meeting was taking place.

Iraqi police said the building was being used as a recruiting centre for neighbourhood patrols to fight Sunni militants.

The militias, generally grouped as a movement known as the Sunni tribal Awakening, are credited with pushing back al-Qaeda in areas that they had been operating with relative freedom.

US officials say this has helped reduce attacks in Iraq by 60% since June.

But neighbourhood patrols have come increasingly under attack from Sunni radicals, especially in provinces like Diyala, where militant movements such as al-Qaeda are regrouping, US commanders warn.