14 killed in car bomb attacks in Baghdad

At least 14 Iraqis were killed and 51 wounded in two car bomb attacks in the Iraqi capital Baghdad Saturday evening, an Iraqi interior ministry source said.

The first attack occurred late in the afternoon when a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden truck into a crowded police checkpoint at the southern entrance of Baghdad in Doura district, killing 11 policemen and civilians, and wounding 42 others, Xinhua reported.

The source added that a car bomb exploded later in the evening near the visitors who were celebrating Shiite Ashura ceremony in Palestine Street in eastern Baghdad, which led to the deaths of three of them and wounding nine others.

The toll could rise as ambulances and police vehicles continue to evacuate the casualties to hospitals, the source said.

Iraq has been witnessing some of the worst violence in years. Terrorism and violence have killed 5,576 civilians in Iraq in the first half of this year, with 11,666 more wounded, according to a recent UN report.