A powerful blast rocked Iraq's parliament building in the heavily-fortified Green Zone in central Baghdad on Thursday, leaving two lawmakers dead and over 10 injured, an Interior Ministry source said.
A bomb apparently hidden inside a restaurant in the building went off while many members of parliament were having lunch, the source said.
Muhammed Hassan Awadh, a legislator from the Iraqi National Dialogue Front, was killed, the source said, but gave no details about the other lawmaker.
More than 10 people, including five parliament members from the Consensus Front, were injured.
The Iraqi National Dialogue Front is headed by secular Sunni Salih al-Mutlak while the Consensus Front is presided by Dr Adnan al-Duleimi, also a Sunni.
The blast was an extremely rare security breach in which a bomb was planted and detonated inside the exclusive area because anyone who enters is subjected to numerous security checks, including dog sniffing and metal detectors.
The Green Zone has been in the past hit by indirect fires such as mortars launched from outside.
{{/usCountry}}The Green Zone has been in the past hit by indirect fires such as mortars launched from outside.
{{/usCountry}}Earlier on Thursday, an explosive laden truck detonated on a key bridge over the Tigris River in Baghdad, killing at least five people and injuring 18 others. At least five cars also plunged into the Tigris River below.