Police commander Maj. Aziz Al-Amarah says the killings happened Monday afternoon about 40 km south of Baghdad. He said the motive was not known.

The victims were a married couple and their four children, ages 11, 10, 9 and 6. The father owns a clothing shop in the area.

The violence comes after several bloody days in Iraq. On Friday, gunmen killed 24 villagers execution-style in a Sunni area. And suicide bombers detonated three car bombs on Sunday near foreign embassies in Baghdad, killing more than 40 people.