A series of bombings has struck near markets, cafes and the theatre in Baghdad, the deadliest in nationwide attacks in which 22 people and 12 militants were killed.
The bloodshed, which left more than 70 wounded across the country on Sunday, was the latest in a protracted surge in violence that has forced Iraq to appeal for international help in combating militancy just months before its first general election in four years.
The deadliest of Sunday's attacks struck in Baghdad, where a wave of evening bombings targeted civilians in both Sunni and Shi'ite neighbourhoods of the capital.
Four car bombs and three roadside bombs hit areas ranging from the Shi'ite slum neighbourhood of Sadr City in northeast Baghdad to the western Sunni suburb of Radhwaniyah.
A car bomb went off near the National Theatre in the centre of the capital, while blasts also struck a market in south Baghdad and a cafe in the north.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
Overall, at least 17 people were killed and more than 50 wounded, according to security and medical officials.
The explosions are part of a months-long trend of attacks timed to go off in the evening as Iraqis mass at public meeting places, with restaurants, cafes, and football pitches all hit as violence has surged.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bloodshed, but Sunni militants linked to Al-Qaeda often set off coordinated bombings across Baghdad, ostensibly in a bid to undermine public confidence in the Shiite-led government.
Earlier on Sunday, violence in Baghdad and north of the capital left five people dead, while security officials claimed to have killed a dozen militants attempting to carry out attacks.
Two civilians and three insurgents died in the northern town of Tuz Khurmatu when a car bomb that attackers were moving to their apparent target went off -- apparently by mistake -- with the militants inside.
Along with the dead, 12 others were wounded, including two Kurdish security forces guarding the Kurdish-majority neighbourhood in the ethnically-mixed northern town.
"God foiled a massacre that was about to happen today," Tuz Khurmatu Mayor Shallal Abdul told AFP.
Separate attacks targeting Sunni anti-Qaeda tribal militiamen on Baghdad's southern outskirts and north of the capital in Salaheddin province left two people and four militants dead in all.
