WATCH: Explosion in Iraq’s southern Mosul kills, wounds dozens

Five people were killed, and many more injured on Tuesday after a car bomb detonated near a market in south Mosul, local police in Nineveh province said.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Five people were killed, and many more injured on Tuesday after a car bomb detonated near a market in south Mosul, local police in Nineveh province said.

The car, packed with explosives, was parked near a restaurant and a crowded market area in Qayyara town, south of the city of Mosul, police said.

The blast killed at least five and wounded dozens more, a medical source in the area told Kurdistan 24, stating the casualty numbers may rise as some of the victims are in a critical state.

No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Islamic State (IS) militants have carried out similar attacks in other parts of the country.

Iraq’s top military commander in Mosul, Major-General Najim al-Jabouri, accused the jihadist group of carrying out the attack.

An interior ministry spokesman said the blast was a result of a “terrorist attack by a car bomb.”

Qayyara, an oil-rich town, has enjoyed a relatively stable security situation since Iraqi forces recaptured it in August 2016.

Iraqi lawmaker Ahmed al-Jabouri stated on his Twitter account that the explosion was a “terrorist” attack, and described it as a “dangerous incident,” the likes of which has not occurred in that town since its liberation from IS.

Despite Iraq declaring a victory against the extremist group last December, IS continues to launch sporadic attacks, including bombings, assassinations, and kidnappings in previously liberated areas. 

Editing by Nadia Riva