57 killed in Iraq attacks

At least 57 people were killed and 137 injured in a series of bomb blasts occurring in different parts of Iraq Wednesday.

The blasts, occurring as car bombings and roadside bombings, were witnessed in central and eastern Iraq, Xinhua reported.

The worst violence was witnessed in Baghdad, where at least eight car bombs and two roadside bombs ripped through busy areas of the capital city, killing a total of 39 people and wounding 109.

Eight people were killed and 20 wounded when two car bombs exploded in Husseiniya district in Baghdad, a police source said.

A car bomb exploded in the city's Shaib district, killing up to four people and wounding 14, while five civilians were killed and 14 injured when a car bomb exploded in Shula district, the police source said.

Three people were killed and nine wounded in Shula district in a roadside explosion at a marketplace.

Five people were killed and nine wounded when a car bomb exploded in Andalus Square of the city, a source said, adding that three civilians were killed and eight wounded when a roadside bomb went off in a popular market in Baghdad's al-Obeidi area.

Separately, a car bomb explosion in al-Sanah Street in central Baghdad killed

Up to six civilians were killed and 12 injured in the captial city's al-Sanah Street, the source said, adding another 12 were injured when a car bomb exploded in Palestine Street.

An Iraqi police officer was killed when a sticky bomb struck his car in the city's Zafaraniyah area.

The eighth car bomb blast occurred in the Shiite district of Sadr City in Baghdad, killing four people and wounding 11.

The deadliest single attack occurred in Diyala province, where 14 people were killed and 25 wounded in three bomb explosions at a funeral tent in a village, a police source said.

Elsewhere, a car bomb went off in Dujail city, some 60 km from Baghdad, killing four people and wounding three others.

The latest wave of massive bombings came as the Iraqi army backed by Sunni tribes have been fighting al-Qaida militants in Iraq's western province of Anbar in particular in and near the provincial capital city of Ramadi, some 110 km west of Baghdad, and near the restive city of Fallujah.

Iraq is witnessing its worst violence in recent years. According to the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq, a total of 8,868 Iraqis, including 7,818 civilians and civilian police personnel, were killed in 2013, the highest annual toll for years.

--Indo-Asian New Service

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