BAGHDAD, May 24 (Xinhua) -- At least three people were killed, including a police officer, and 17 others wounded in an overnight suicide bomb attack at a park in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said on Thursday.

The attack took place around midnight when a suicide bomber detonated his explosive belt near a restaurant and a coffee shop in al-Saqlawiyah Park at the entrance of Shula neighborhood in northwestern Baghdad, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Among the killed was a member of a police patrol officer. He was checking on a suspicious person who approached the spot before the man blew himself up, the source said.

Two of the wounded sustained serious injuries and are in critical condition, the source said.

"The casualty would be much higher if the attacker managed to enter the crowded spot at the park, where many people were enjoying their time at the park after a day of fasting in the holy month of Ramadan," the source said.

The powerful blast destroyed parts of the nearby restaurant and coffee shop and damaged many civilian vehicles in the surrounding area, the source added.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) militant group, in most cases, is responsible for such suicide attacks, targeting areas where crowds of people gather, including markets, cafes and mosques across Iraq.

The attack came days after millions of Iraqis cast votes in the country's parliamentary elections on May 12, which is the first since the full territorial defeat of IS in Iraq in December 2017.