Car bombs near a maternity hospital and a service station in Baghdad killed at least 14 people today, the latest in a spate of blasts to hit the city, police and medics said.
One blast struck across the street from the hospital in the frequently targeted Shiite neighbourhood of Sadr City, killing at least nine, the sources said. Another 22 were wounded.
Residents said a man parked an explosives-laden car in front of a pharmacy. After going inside, he came out saying he had not found what he needed and was going to walk up the street to another pharmacy.
The second explosion occurred near a petrol station in Karrada, a central district of Baghdad that has also been repeatedly targeted.
The explosion ripped through a busy street only a few blocks away from the national theatre, killing at least five people and wounding 28.
Bomb attacks, including suicide car bombs, have intensified in Baghdad in recent days.
The Islamic State group, which controls parts of the country, has claimed responsibility for some of them, raising fears of a bloodbath during the upcoming Ashura religious Shiite ritual.
