Four Iraqi soldiers and seven civilians were killed in the explosion, set off by a suicide bomber in a car packed with nearly half a ton of explosives, report agencies.  Most of the victims were people who had queued up for jobs with the government and multinational forces.

The explosion occurred near a checkpoint in the area earlier known as the ``Green Zone,'' which houses government offices and the US and British embassies, Iraqi police Col. Tawfeeq Sayer was quoted as saying.

The force of the blast left a huge crater in the road, and completely gutted at least six cars and four trucks parked in the area, said reports.

Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, who rushed to the site immediately afterwards, declared that `this is a naked aggression against the Iraqi people. We will bring these criminals to justice.'