A suicide bomber killed 12 Sunni Arab militiamen queuing to collect overdue pay cheques at an Iraqi army post south of Baghdad on Saturday, and wounded 32, police said. A series of attacks this week have alarmed Iraqis as they ponder whether a sharp drop in violence set off by the 2003 US invasion can be sustained as Iraqi forces take the lead from US troops in providing security.
Saturdays attack was in Iskandariya, 40 km (25 miles) south of the Iraqi capital, once part of an area known as the "Triangle of Death" where Sunni extremists like al Qaeda frequently attacked Shia Muslims.