Three explosions killed 19 in eastern Baghdad

Nineteen people were killed and more than 68 others injured in three bombings in eastern Baghdad on Thursday, including one at a popular market, an Interior Ministry source told Xinhua.

A bomb ripped through a market in al-Ameen district in eastern Baghdad shortly after 7:00 p.m. (1500 GMT), the source said on customary condition of anonymity, adding several shops and cars were also damaged.

The other two blasts rocked the al-Baladeat district in eastern Baghdad, the source said.

The source can not immediately identify the casualties in each blast.

Earlier in eastern Baghdad, a suicide attacker detonated his bomb-laden car at a gas station in eastern Baghdad, leaving 4 people killed and 11 others injured.

The suicide car bombing targeted a line of cars waiting at a gas station in Mashtal area in eastern Baghdad.

Drivers in Baghdad have to wait several hours to gas up their cars due to a severe fuel shortage. Lines of cars stretch for several miles, which are often targeted by militants.

In another violence in Baghdad, a bomb exploded near a restaurant on Palestine Street in eastern Baghdad, wounding eight people.

On Wednesday, a spate of attacks across Iraq killed at least 38 people and wounded more than 80 others.

The uprising violence in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities are seen as a major setback for Iraqi government's efforts to achieve peace and security.

Source: Xinhua