A deadly car bomb has exploded in a crowded market in the southern Iraqi province of Dhiqa.
There are conflicting reports on the number of people killed. Officials told the BBC there were 16 dead but other sources gave a higher figure. Police say the bomb was in a parked car in the town of Bathaa, about 320km (200 miles) south-east of Baghdad. In the past the area has been the scene of fierce fighting between rival Shia militia factions. Hospital officials say about 40 people were wounded in the mid-morning attack. A statement posted on the Dhiqa province website said that "no fewer than 30 bodies were collected and around 70 others were wounded," AFP news agency reported. Bathas's mayor, Ali Fahad, said the casualties were being taken to a hospital in Nasiriya, about 30km away. "Children and women are among the dead," he said.
US withdrawal
Overall, attacks have fallen sharply in Iraq.
But a number of recent blasts in the south have raised fears that sustained violence could return to the area.
The BBC's Nicholas Witchell, in Baghdad, says that because Bathaa is in a Shia area, Sunni insurgent groups linked to al-Qaeda will inevitably be suspected of being behind the blast.
The US plans to withdraw its troops from Iraqi cities and major towns by 30 June, and is due to end combat operations across Iraq by September 2010, leaving Iraqi security forces to cope alone.
There are concerns that insurgents may try to take advantage of the withdrawal, says our correspondent.
There are conflicting reports on the number of people killed. Officials told the BBC there were 16 dead but other sources gave a higher figure. Police say the bomb was in a parked car in the town of Bathaa, about 320km (200 miles) south-east of Baghdad. In the past the area has been the scene of fierce fighting between rival Shia militia factions. Hospital officials say about 40 people were wounded in the mid-morning attack. A statement posted on the Dhiqa province website said that "no fewer than 30 bodies were collected and around 70 others were wounded," AFP news agency reported. Bathas's mayor, Ali Fahad, said the casualties were being taken to a hospital in Nasiriya, about 30km away. "Children and women are among the dead," he said.
US withdrawal
Overall, attacks have fallen sharply in Iraq.
But a number of recent blasts in the south have raised fears that sustained violence could return to the area.
The BBC's Nicholas Witchell, in Baghdad, says that because Bathaa is in a Shia area, Sunni insurgent groups linked to al-Qaeda will inevitably be suspected of being behind the blast.
The US plans to withdraw its troops from Iraqi cities and major towns by 30 June, and is due to end combat operations across Iraq by September 2010, leaving Iraqi security forces to cope alone.
There are concerns that insurgents may try to take advantage of the withdrawal, says our correspondent.
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