The blast occurred at around 8:00 am (0500 GMT) in the eastern neighbourhood of Jadidah, or New Baghdad, an interior ministry official said on condition of anonymity.

He said one Iraqi guard died, and the wounded included two Norwegians and two Iraqi private security guards, adding that they were part of a convoy from the water resources ministry.

A doctor at Al-Kindi hospital in central Baghdad confirmed five people, including two foreigners, suffered wounds from a bomb blast.

All of the injured were in stable condition, according to the doctor, who did not want to be named.

Water resources ministry spokesman Ali Hashim told AFP that Norwegians are employed by the ministry, but could not immediately confirm any details about the incident.

In a separate attack, a traffic policeman was killed by gunmen using silenced weapons in the northern Baghdad neighbourhood of Al-Utayfiyah, the interior ministry official said.

Also on Monday, a roadside bomb targeting Baghdad provincial council member Kamil al-Zaidi blew up as the politician's convoy was on the edge of the Shiite neighbourhood of Sadr City, according to the official.

Eight people were wounded in the attack, including three policemen, but Zaidi was unharmed.

Another roadside bomb targeting a police patrol near Al-Wathiq square in central Baghdad wounded four people, including three policemen.

Violence in Iraq is markedly down from its peak in 2006 and 2007, but attacks remain common, especially in Baghdad. A total of 211 people were killed in attacks in April, according to official figures.

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