A suicide bomber blew himself up while standing in a line of recruits outside the police headquarters in the Iraqi city of Fallujah today, killing at least 15 people and wounding 30.
The attack aimed at discouraging Sunni Arabs from joining the force, police said.
Thirteen of the dead were recruits and two were policemen, said police 1st Lt Omar Ahmed.
Police also found the bodies of 14 Iraqi men in Baghdad who apparently were the latest victims of a wave of sectarian violence involving death squads that kidnap civilians, torture them in captivity and dump their bodies on city streets.
The attack in Fallujah, a former insurgent stronghold 40 miles west of Baghdad, was part of an insurgent campaign against US efforts to bring more Sunnis into the police and army.
The bomber, dressed in civilian clothes, struck outside the entrance of the police building. His hidden bomb exploded several minutes after he joined the crowd of recruits waiting to enter the building and apply for jobs, Lt Ahmed said.
Yesterday, the bodies of four Iraqi soldiers were found in the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi, two days after they graduated from basic training as part of the first all-Sunni class, according to police.
Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, is 30 miles west of Fallujah.
AP