A wave of coordinated car bombs and blasts hit districts across Baghdad and south of the Iraqi capital on Tuesday, killing at least 25 people.
The attacks came ahead of the 10th anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion into Iraq.
At least a dozen car bombs and assassinations across the Iraqi capital also left another 88 people wounded, with officials warning the toll could rise, amid a spike in violence that has raised fresh questions about the capabilities of Iraqi security forces barely a month ahead of provincial elections.
No group immediately claimed Tuesday's blasts, but Iraq's al-Qaeda wing, Islamic State of Iraq, has vowed to take back ground lost in its long war with American troops. Since the start of the year, the group has carried out a string of high-profile attacks, including an attack on the ministry complex in central Baghdad.
Sunni Islamist insurgents tied to al-Qaeda have stepped up their campaign of attacks on Shiite targets this year in an attempt to trigger sectarian tensions and undermine Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government.
Car bombs and roadside blasts exploded across the capital on Tuesday and a suicide bomber driving a truck attacked a police base in another predominantly Shi'ite town just south of Baghdad, police and hospital sources said.
The attacks struck the neighborhoods of Husseiniyah, Mashtal, Zafraniyah, Baghdad Jadidah, Kadhimiyah, Sadr City and Shuala, as well as the town of Iskandiriyah, just south of the capital.
Two people were also gunned down in Saidiyah and Mansur.
Violence has spiked ahead of the anniversary of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, with 87 people killed in the past week, according to an AFP tally based on reports from security and medical officials.
19 Mar, 2013
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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/2013/03/19/Wave-of-car-bombs-blasts-kills-at-least-25-in-Iraq.html
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