Officials say a car bomb has hit a patrol in Mosul, one of three attacks in the northern Iraqi city that left five dead, Belfast Telegraph reported.

A police officer says the car bomb went off at a house early on Sunday May 26 morning while a joint army-police unit was conducting door-to-door searches. The blast killed two policemen and one soldier.

Downtown, militants gunned down a policeman in his car. Authorities also found a body floating in the Tigris river, shot at close range with the hands tied behind the back.

Mosul, some 360 kilometres (225 miles) north west of Baghdad, is a former stronghold of Sunni militants.

A medical official confirmed the casualty figures. Both officials spoke anonymously as they were not authorised to release information.