40 dead in wave of Iraq attacks with Baghdad focus

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A wave of car bombs ripped through Shiite areas of [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]'s capital, the deadliest attacks in nationwide violence that killed 40 people on Tuesday as Iraq grapples with surging unrest.

The bloodshed added to widespread concern that Iraq is edging towards a return to the all-out sectarian war that left tens of thousands dead in 2006-2007, amid a long-running political deadlock and persistent concerns of spillover from the conflict in neighbouring Syria.

Iraqi officials have trumpeted wide-ranging operations targeting militants in which hundreds of alleged fighters have been captured and dozens killed, despite charges of failing to address root causes of the violence.

A half-dozen car bombs went off in predominantly-Shiite neighbourhoods of Baghdad, killing at least 31 people and leaving dozens wounded, according to security and medical officials.

The blasts went off minutes apart at around 6:00 pm (1500 GMT), the latest in a trend of attacks timed to coincide with Baghdadis visiting cafes and other public areas during the evening.

No group immediately claimed responsibility but Sunni militants linked to Al-Qaeda frequently carry out coordinated attacks targeting Iraq's Shiite Muslim majority who they regard as apostates.

Nine other people were killed in attacks earlier the same day, officials said.

In the morning, gunmen entered the home of a Sunni Arab militiaman in south Baghdad and killed him, as well as his wife, two sons and a daughter.

That came a day after two sets of attacks against the Sunni militia killed 12 people, including a coordinated assault involving two suicide bombers and a car bomb on the home of the militia's national chief in which he was wounded.

From late 2006 onwards, Sunni tribal militias, known as the Sahwa, turned against their co-religionists in Al-Qaeda and sided with the US military, helping to turn the tide of Iraq's bloody insurgency.

But Sunni militants view them as traitors and frequently target them.

Also on Tuesday, two Shiite Muslim men were shot dead outside their homes in south Baghdad, while a policeman was killed by a roadside bomb in the predominantly Sunni northern city of Mosul.

Attacks have killed more than 3,800 people since the start of the year, according to an AFP tally.

Officials have vowed to press on with a campaign targeting militants that Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki says has captured 800 alleged fighters and killed dozens of others, as well as dismantling training camps and bomb-making sites.

But the government has faced criticism for not doing more to tackle anger in the Sunni Arab community over alleged ill-treatment at the hands of Iraq's Shiite-led authorities.

Analysts and diplomats say this has given militant groups room on the ground to recruit and carry out attacks.

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BAGHDAD, Sept 3 (Reuters) - A series of car bombs exploded across the Iraqi capital late on Tuesday, killing at least 21 people in predominantly Shi'ite districts, police and medics said.



The deadliest blast took place in Baghdad's northern Talbiya neighbourhood, where a car bomb in a busy street killed nine people.



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At least 18 killed in mostly Shia dominated neighbourhoods of Iraqi capital amid escalating violence.

A spate of car bombs in mostly-Shia neighbourhoods of the Iraqi capital has killed at least 18 people, security and medical officials said.

The bombings struck across Baghdad and left dozens of others wounded on Tuesday, in the latest in a trend of increased attacks in the evening as Iraqis visit cafes and other public areas.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attacks.


Also, gunmen shot two people dead in Baghdad's southern Dora neighbourhood and four bodies with gunshot wounds to the back were found in different locations around the Iraqi capital, the officials said.


Violence in Iraq has intensified since April to levels not seen since 2008.

More than 4,000 people have been killed over the past five months alone, including more than 800 in August, according to figures provided by UN officials based in Iraq.

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BAGHDAD —

Iraqi officials say multiple car bombs have exploded within minutes of each other in Baghdad, raising the day's death toll to at least 33.

Police say the deadliest of Tuesday evening's blasts hit a row of restaurants in the capital's eastern Talibiyah neighborhood, killing seven and wounding 28.

Back-to-back car bombs blew up near a police station in the western neighborhood of Sadiyah, killing six and wounding 15. Police say another blast hit a central square in the commercial district of Karradah, killing six and wounding 14.

Authorities said earlier attacks killed 14. Hospital officials confirmed the casualty figures, and all of the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

Shootings and a car bombing in and south of Baghdad killed 14 people Tuesday, the latest deaths in a surge of sectarian killings and other violence this year, Iraqi officials said.

The deadliest attack came when gunmen stormed the house of a member of a Sunni militia opposed to al-Qaida, killing him and his wife and three children in a southern suburb of the capital, police and hospital officials said.

The militia, known as the Sahwa, helped U.S. troops fight al-Qaida at the height of the war and since been a target for hard-line insurgents who consider them traitors. Prominent Sahwa leader Wisam al-Hardan managed to escape unharmed an assassination attempt on Monday by two suicide bombers, but six of his bodyguards and a bystander were killed.

Elsewhere in [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] Tuesday, a car bomb blew up at a restaurant in the town of Jbala just south of the capital, killing two people and wounding seven others.

Gunmen shot two people dead in Baghdad's southern Dora neighborhood and four bodies with gunshot wounds to the back were found in different locations around the Iraqi capital, the officials said. The discovery of the bodies was reminiscent of the sectarian violence that engulfed the country several years ago, when corpses were commonly dumped on the streets.

No one claimed responsibility for Tuesday's attacks in Baghdad, but they bore the hallmark of al-Qaida in [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and other Sunni insurgent groups.

Shiite religious leaders and politicians have called for calm in response to the wave of violence, but some attacks on Sunni mosques are raising fears that Shiite armed groups are starting to retaliate.

In the southern city of Basra, gunmen shot and killed Sunni cleric Abdul-Karim Mustafa as he was walking near the al-Taqwa mosque, said police and other officials in the city.

Violence in [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] has intensified since April to levels not seen since 2008. More than 4,000 people have been killed over the past five months alone, including more than 800 in August, according to figures provided by United Nations officials based in [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].

Hospital officials confirmed the casualty figures, and all of the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

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