BAGHDAD: Iraqi authorities say five people have been killed in a string of attacks across the country.

Police officials say that in the first attack, gunmen early Wednesday fatally shot a policeman and his brother who is a member of anti-al-Qaida group north of Baghdad.

In the western province of Anbar, a car bomb targeting the house of a police colonel in Fallujah killed the officer's neighbor but left the colonel unharmed.

Another car bomb struck a group of Shiite pilgrims heading to the holy city of Karbala, killing two people.

Hospital officials confirmed the causalities. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk to the media.

Violence has ebbed in Iraq, but insurgent attacks are still frequent.