A female suicide bomber detonated explosives outside a courthouse Wednesday in central Baquba, killing nine people, the Interior Ministry said.
Among the victims were five soldiers and a police officer, a ministry official said. The blast wounded 17 others.
The official said the woman, covered in a traditional black garment known as an abaya, blew herself up near a security checkpoint outside the courthouse.
Baquba is located about 35 miles north of Baghdad, inDiyala province.
On Tuesday, Iraqi authorities arrested a 38-year-old woman, Ibtisam Adwan, suspected of heading up the recruitment of female suicide bombers, Iraq's Defense Ministry said.
