[Update 5:50 a.m. ET] The car bomb exploded outside a recruiting center about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Baghdad.   Four of the dead were soldiers, but most were recruits, police officials said.

[Update 5:40 a.m. ET] Baghdad police officials have upped the death toll from the attack to at least 26 people.  Another 30 have been wounded.

[Posted at 5:01 a.m. ET] Three Iraqi soldiers were killed and 11 others were wounded today when a car bomb exploded near an Iraqi army base in an area with many Sunni and Shiite residents, police officials said.

The explosive-laden vehicle was detonated remotely, when the soldiers patrolling on foot not far from their base near al-Hamamiyat passed by it, the officials said, who spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity, as they are not authorized to speak to the media.

Al-Hamamiyat is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Baghdad in the Taji district, which witnessed several attacks and explosions in the past weeks, mostly targeting Iraqi security forces.

Yesterday, a number of attacks in and around Baghdad killed four people and wounded more than a dozen.

Nearly 150 people died in acts of violence across the country last month.