Dozens killed in series of Baghdad bomb attacks

Deadliest blast takes place at secondhand motorcycle market in Sadr City

Sunni Muslim gunmen take position during a patrol in the city of Falluja, west of Baghdad. Government forces are fighting rebellious Sunni tribes and an al-Qaeda splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in western Anbar province. Photograph: Reuters
Sunni Muslim gunmen take position during a patrol in the city of Falluja, west of Baghdad. Government forces are fighting rebellious Sunni tribes and an al-Qaeda splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in western Anbar province. Photograph: Reuters

At least 31 people were killed and 51 wounded when a motorcycle rigged with explosives detonated in Baghdad’s Sadr City, medical and security sources said.

The motorcycle was in a market in the Shia Muslim neighbourhood that sells used bikes and was filled with people, mostly young men.

It was not clear who was behind the bombing but violence against Shias is often blamed on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, an al-Qaeda-linked group.

Also in Sadr City, officials say a bomb attached to a minibus exploded, killing five civilians and wounding 14. Meanwhile, officials say another bomb on a minibus killed four and wounded 11 in the northern Shaab district.

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A police officer and two medical officials confirmed casualty figures from the attacks.