Baghdad: A suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into a checkpoint outside a Shiite town north of Baghdad on Monday, killing at least 14 people, Iraqi officials said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which bore the hallmarks of the extremist Islamic State group. Since late last year, the group has suffered a string of territorial losses, most recently in Fallujah, where it was driven out last month by Iraqi forces after occupying the city for more than two years. But the extremists have continued to carry out near-daily bombings in and around Baghdad, as well as complex attacks in other countries.