( CNN ) -- NEW : Mortar and car bomb attacks killed nearly 60 people , report says . NEW : A suicide bomber blew himself up at a checkpoint in the northern city of Kirkuk, killing five soldiers and wounding seven others. The car bomb hits an Alawite area , says the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights . Chemical weapons watchdog says it is investigating chlorine gas attack claims .
NEW : Mortar and car bomb attacks killed nearly 60 people , report says . NEW : A suicide bomber blew himself up at a checkpoint in the northern city of Kirkuk, killing five soldiers and wounding seven others. The car bomb hits an Alawite area , says the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights . Chemical weapons watchdog says it is investigating chlorine gas attack claims .