Four die in Iraq attack by female suicide bomber

A female suicide bomber blew herself up at the entrance in Iraq, killing at least four people the interior ministry said.

A female suicide bomber blew herself up at the entrance to government offices in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi on Sunday killing at least four people, the interior ministry said.

The attack comes amid a surge in violence which in past weeks has swept the province of Anbar and its capital Ramadi, shattering a long period of relative calm in what was once the epicentre of al Qaeda activity and Sunni insurgency.

"At least four people were killed and 23 others wounded, including women and children, by a female suicide bomber at the entrance to the provincial government building," an interior ministry official said.

Local officials could not immediately confirm the toll. Mohammed Fathi, a spokesman for the Anbar provincial authorities, quoting initial hospital reports, told AFP earlier that at least 10 people were hurt in the attack west of Baghdad.