Special report: Tension escalates in Iraq

    BAGHDAD, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- A series of deadly attacks in Baghdad killed at least 103 people and injured more that 240 on Tuesday, casting shadows on security operation between the Iraqi government and U.S. forces to curb violence.

A policeman walks on the rubble of a house after a car bomb attack in Kirkuk, about 250 km (150 miles) north of Baghdad, Jan. 15, 2007. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery >>>

    Two car bombs and a suicide bomber killed 65 people and wounded132 near a university in eastern Baghdad, a well-informed Interior Ministry official told Xinhua.

    The blasts occurred at around 4:00 p.m. (1300 GMT) while many students and employees in Al-Mustansriyah University, who finished their courses and work, were waiting at an entrance for minibuses and cars to take them home, the official said on condition of anonymity.

    Two explosive-laden cars went off in short succession, killing dozens of people. While many scared people were fleeing the scene,a suicide bomber blew himself up, causing heavy casualties, the official added.

    Meanwhile, gunmen in a minivan and on two motorcycles sprayed shoppers at a market in eastern Baghdad with automatic gunfire, killing 15 people and injuring 20, a police source told Xinhua.

    Early in the morning, a roadside bomb went off near a police patrol in central Baghdad, leaving four people dead and 10 others wounded.

    At around midday, twin blasts near a Sunni mosque in Bab al-Sheikh neighborhood in central Baghdad killed 15 people and injured 70 others.

    Two hours later, a bomb-rigged minibus went off in Sadr City in eastern Baghdad, killing four people and wounding 10 others.

    The attacks coincided with a report released by the United Nations that more than 34,000 Iraqis were killed in violence last year.

    "The situation is particularly grave in Baghdad, where most casualties and unidentified bodies that are daily recorded also bear signs of torture," Gianni Magazzeni, the UN human rights chief in Iraq, told reporters on Tuesday.

    Magazzeni said the UN figures were compiled from information obtained from the Iraqi Health Ministry, operation centers at hospitals across the country and other agencies.

    He rapped the Iraqi government for failing to curb violence and blamed some militias, active inside police and army, for killings and sectarian attacks.

    "Without significant progress in the rule of law, sectarian violence will continue indefinitely and eventually spiral out of control," Magazzeni warned.

    The latest carnage came days before Iraqi authorities and U.S. forces are going to carry out a new security plan in Baghdad to crack down on illegal militants from all sectors.

    U.S. President George W. Bush also pledged to send additional 21,500 soldiers to Iraq, most of them to Baghdad. However, many doubt if it will work.

Related:

UN: More than 34,000 Iraqis killed in 2006

    BAGHDAD, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations said Tuesday that more than 34,000 Iraqis were killed and about 35,600 people wounded in 2006.

    The UN human rights report released here Tuesday said that last year at least 34,452 Iraqis were killed and 35,685 people were wounded in daily acts of violence across Iraq.

UAE top diplomat: security, stability key to Iraq

    ABU DHABI, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- Restoring security and stability was a top priority for Iraq, the United Arab Emirates' (UAE) top diplomat said on Monday.

Backgrounder: Major bombing attacks in Iraq since March 2003

    BAGHDAD, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- A series of deadly attacks in Baghdad killed at least 103 people and injured more that 240 on Tuesday, casting a shadow on security operation between the Iraqi government and U.S. forces to curb violence.

    The following are major bombing attacks in Iraq since the outbreak of the Iraq war in March 2003 (in time descending order).

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