Bomber kills four at Iraqi army base

A suicide attacker drove a bomb-laden minibus into the entrance of an Iraqi army base near Saddam Hussein's home town today, setting off an explosion that killed four soldiers and wounded 10 others, police said.

Two of the soldiers died while they were being treated at a hospital just north of the city of Tikrit, a spokesman said.

A police official and witnesses said the bomber drove the minibus into the main gate of the base at about 7am during a shift change for soldiers.

Meanwhile, an al-Qa'ida-linked group is claiming it carried out a bombing earlier this week targeting the Baghdad offices of the pan-Arab television station Al-Arabiya.

A statement on the website of the Islamic State of Iraq said the operation, which killed at least six people on Monday, was carried out by a "hero of Islam".

The statement described the Dubai-based channel as "corrupt".

The Arabic-language channel is one of the most popular in the Middle East but is perceived by insurgents as being pro-Western.