At least 27 people have been killed by a car bomb that exploded at the entrance to an Iraqi army base near Baghdad, police and medics say. More than 40 others were wounded by the blast, which occurred at 12:00 (09:00 GMT) at the facility in Taji, about 25km (15 miles) north of the capital. Although violence has decreased in Iraq since its peak in 2006 and 2007, insurgent attacks are still frequent. On Monday, two car bombings killed at least four people and wounded 16 others around Baghdad. The first took place at a market in the mainly Shia district of al-Ubaidi, while the second struck an army patrol in Taji, wounding several soldiers. It is not clear how many of the victims of Tuesday's blast were soldiers. One report said as many as 19 were among the dead.
