BAGHDAD (AP) — Police and health officials say a car bomb in Iraq's heartland Shiite province south of Baghdad has killed at least 6 people and wounded 20.

A police officer says the parked car bomb targeted one of the gates to the city of Karbala, killing 6 civilians. He says several policemen are among the 20 wounded in the mid-morning attack. The blast damaged a number of nearby buildings and cars.

A health official in a local hospital confirmed the causality figure. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to the media.

Karbala is 90 kilometers, or 55 miles, south of Baghdad. It's one of the holiest cities in Shiite Islam and the place where the Prophet Muhammad's grandson, Imam Hussein, is buried.