A suicide bomber killed six people and wounded six others Monday near the southern Iraqi city of Karbala.
The country's Interior Ministry said security forces killed five other attackers, and that the suicide bomber blew himself up inside a house after being surrounded.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. It happened in Ain al-Tamer, about 50 kilometers from Karbala. The city is home to a vastly important shrine for Shi'ites, who are considered heretics by the Islamic State group responsible for multiple similar attacks.
The bombing also came as Shi'ites prepared to mark Arbaeen, the end of a 40-day mourning period commemorating the seventh century death of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson, Imam Hussein.
While bombings are frequent in Iraq, they are relatively rare south of Baghdad, which accounts for the vast majority of civilian casualties linked to acts of terrorism and armed conflict.