Iraqi government forces say they have defeated a militant attack on the country's largest oil refinery, killing several insurgents.

The Baiji refinery in northern Iraq has been the site of several battles between government forces and militants over the past few months.

The Islamic State (IS) militant group is suspected of carrying out the attack.

Meanwhile, a car bomb killed at least seven people in the capital Baghdad.

The bombing targeted the mostly Shia district of Shula.

IS has seized large swathes of Iraq and Syria in recent months.

Since 8 August, the US has carried out more than 90 air strikes to support Iraqi and Kurdish troops tackling the insurgents.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is currently in Baghdad to talk about the growing threat posed by IS.

Attractive target

The militants launched their push on the Baiji refinery on Saturday and the fighting continued into Sunday, police sources and witnesses told the AFP news agency.

But the insurgents were eventually pushed back by security forces.

The refinery is an attractive target for IS militants, as it produces about a third of Iraq's oil output.

There are fears that if the militants were able to take the refinery, they might also want to seize the Kurdish-controlled oilfields in Kirkuk to provide fuel.

IS has already taken over large parts of northern Iraq and Syria - including oil-producing areas,

Their campaign has also displaced an estimated 1.2 million people in Iraq, many of them minority Christians and Yazidis who feared they would be killed by the hardline Islamist group.

On Saturday the UN called for action to prevent what it says may be a possible massacre in the northern Iraqi town of Amerli.

Amerli, under siege by IS for two months, has no electricity or drinking water, and is running out of food and medical supplies.
Crisis talks

As the violence continues, the rise of IS is an urgent point of discussion for Iraq's neighbours and the wider region.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is currently in Baghdad for talks.

He has met outgoing Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and is expected to meet his Iraqi counterpart, Hoshyar Zebari, and Prime Minister-designate Haider al-Abadi during the visit. IS will be one of the main topics on the agenda.

According to an official statement seen by Reuters, the two men discussed the need for an international effort to eliminate the militant group.

Meanwhile Saudi Arabia is hosting a meeting of foreign ministers from Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to discuss their response.

The ministers are from the Friends of Syria group, which opposes the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

BBC