The Iraqi army on Thursday (July 19th) thwarted a car bomb attack targeting a military base in Anbar province, killing the would-be suicide bomber, the Defence Ministry said.

Anbar military operations command spokesperson Lt. Col. Nejim al-Dulaimi told Al-Shorfa that " a Mercedes, loaded with about half a ton of explosives and driven by a suicide bomber, attacked the rapid intervention forces' Fallujah military base".

"The guards thwarted the attack by firing heavily at [the car], blowing it up and killing the suicide bomber before he could reach the main gate of the base," he added.

Al-Dulaimi said the blast did not cause any material or human losses, adding that the suicide bomber has been identified as a local al-Qaeda member wanted by the Iraqi judiciary.