At least five soldiers were killed Thursday and 13 others injured in a suicide bomb attack near Iraq's capital Baghdad, a police source said.
The suicide bomber blew up his explosive vest near Iraqi army forces while they were conducting a search operation in Tarmiyah town, 40 km north of Baghdad, the source told Xinhua.
The town is part of a former Sunni stronghold for insurgent groups, including Al-Qaeda, who fiercely fought the US troops and the Iraqi security forces.
According to the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq, 8,109 Iraqis were killed in the country from January to November this year.