The bombing occurred about a half-mile from the Imam Hussein shrine of Karbala, The New York Times reported

Earlier Monday, a roadside bomb exploded near an Iraqi police patrol in Baghdad, killing one officer and wounding another, the Interior Ministry told CNN. Also, another roadside bomb exploded near an Iraqi police patrol, wounding four people.

The Karbala explosion overshadowed a Baghdad visit by U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, who met with Iraqi and American leaders and praised security improvements in the country.

The explosion that rocked central Karbala, a Shiite holy city, was the deadliest attack in that city in nearly a year.