Two car bombs rip through Baghdad killing 21 people, wound dozens

Twin car bombs kill 21 in Baghdad

BAGHDAD — A pair of car bombs tore through two different neighborhoods in Baghdad on Sunday morning, killing 21 people and wounding dozens of others, Iraqi officials said.

The nearly simultaneous blasts broke what has been a period of relative calm since the end of the holy month of Ramadan nearly two weeks ago and underlined the challenges in protecting Iraq’s capital.

Twelve people were killed when a car bomb exploded in western Baghdad’s affluent Mansour neighborhood near a mobile phone office, said Army Brig. Gen. Ali Fathal who is responsible for the west of the city.

He said 10 people were also wounded in the attack. It was not clear if the offices of AsiaCell were the target.

Minutes later another car bomb exploded in Kazimiyah neighborhood’s Adan square in the northern sector of the city, killing at least nine and wounding 38 others, police and hospital sources said.

Two policemen were killed in the blast.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record.