Multiple car bombings kill 7 in Iraq

Seven people have been killed and nearly 120 others injured in when a spate of 11 cars rigged with explosives went off across Iraq, security and medical officials say.

On Monday, three car bombs were detonated in quick succession in Tuz Khurmatu, situated about 175 kilometers (110 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad, at around 8:00 a.m. local time (0500 GMT). The blasts killed six people and wounded 60 others.

Fourteen people were also wounded in the city of Nasiriyah, situated about 305 kilometers (190 miles) south of Baghdad, when two explosives-laden cars exploded.

Six other car bombs struck the oil-rich northern city of Kirkuk, situated about 290 kilometers (175 miles) north of the capital, and the city of Hilla, situated some 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Baghdad.

The explosions killed one person and wounded nearly 60 others.

The bombings were the latest in a string of attacks that have left scores of people dead across Iraq this year.

On Sunday, a series of attacks in Iraq killed 10 people, including a candidate running in the forthcoming provincial elections.

On April 12, a dozen people were killed and over 30 others injured in a bomb attack near a mosque north of Baghdad. The explosion occurred as worshipers were leaving Omar bin Abdul Aziz Mosque in the town of Kanaan, about 75 kilometers northeast of the capital, after the Friday Prayers.

A dozen people, including several Iraqi security officers, were also killed in Baghdad and in the city of Tikrit on April 1.

Iraq prepares for its first elections in three years. The provincial polls are due to be held in 12 of Iraq’s 18 provinces on April 20.