BAGHDAD (AP) — Police say a suicide bomber has killed 16 people and wounded 26 in a crowd of police recruits who were leaving their academy in eastern Baghdad.

It’s the latest strike on Iraqi security officials who are often targeted by insurgents seeking to underscore how vulnerable the country remains.

Iraqi police said the bomber detonated his car Sunday outside the fortified national Police Academy compound when the crowd of recruits came out and began walking down the street.

Officials at three nearby hospitals confirmed the casualties.

All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.