BAGHDAD, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- Police and soldiers in Baghdad cleaned up debris and human remains Wednesday after an apparent suicide bomber's truck exploded downtown.
At least 13 people were killed and 15 others were injured in the early morning blast.
There were conflicting reports that the truck was a fuel tanker that exploded on impact with a bus at an intersection, or that it was only the tractor portion of a truck laden with explosives. Other reports said a roadside bomb caused the blast.
However, police said the vehicle was apparently on a mission to breach the concrete barriers and barbed wire around a nearby police station.
Elsewhere, the al-Jazeera network reported students demonstrating in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul were dispersed by U.S. forces with batons and Iraqi police shooting in the air.
Four students were shot during the second consecutive day of demonstrations in support of Saddam Hussein, police said.
U.S. troops were reported scouring a region north of Baghdad for resistance fighters and raided homes in the town of Samarra, arresting 73 suspects Tuesday night.
