(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - At least 34 people have been killed in series of bomb attacks across Iraq, several of which targeted mainly Shia districts of Baghdad, officials say.
Eleven blasts in the space of an hour in the capital left 23 people dead and more than 100 others injured.
Bomb attacks also killed at least 10 people in the northern city of Kirkuk.
The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Baghdad reports that the news of the bombings in the capital came suddenly on Wednesday evening.
Officials said 11 bombs were detonated between 20:00 and 21:00 local time (17:00-18:00 GMT) in predominantly Shia districts. Most were car bombs, at least two targeting restaurants, they added.
The districts affected were Kadhimiya and Sadr City in the north; Husseiniya, Mashtal and Baghdad al-Jadida in the east; and Saidiya and Zafaraniya in the south.
Sadr City was worst affected, with three bombs killing seven people and wounding another 37.
"I saw a bright flash followed by a strong explosion that shook the building. Glass was shattered everywhere, people immediately ran to the scene and started evacuating the wounded and the dead," a local policeman told the AFP news agency.
A police patrol was also hit by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle in the town of Tarmiya, 50km (30 miles) north of Baghdad, killing two policemen, officials said.
In Kirkuk, a car packed with explosives blew up near a government building in the city centre, killing eight people. An hour later, another car bomb exploded in the same area, killing two children.
Violence has increased in Iraq since December 2011, when an arrest warrant was issued for fugitive Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, who has been charged with running a death squad targeting Iraqi officials and Shia Muslims.
In response, the government has stepped up efforts to boost security across the country.
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16 May 2013 - 04:43
News ID: 419697
At least 34 people have been killed in series of bomb attacks across Iraq, several of which targeted mainly Shia districts of Baghdad, officials say.
