ISIS claims deadly car bomb in Iraqi town

A car bomb blast claimed by ISIS killed at least five people in the Iraqi town of Khalis on Tuesday, officials said.

The blast, which the top provincial official in Khalis said occurred outside a reputed local doctor's house, also left at least 11 wounded.

ISIS said in a claim posted on jihadist forums that the explosion targeted members of Hashed al-Shaabi, an umbrella organization for mostly Shiite militias which has been playing a leading role in the anti-ISIS fightback.

Khalis lies around 60 kilometers north of Baghdad in Diyala, a province which the government declared free of ISIS militants in January.

The jihadists no longer have fixed positions there but have reverted to their old tactics of planting car bombs, carrying out suicide operations or hit-and-run attacks.