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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Dozens killed in Baghdad blasts | Dozens killed in Baghdad blasts |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| At least 54 people have been killed and over 140 injured in two car bombs in a main square in central Baghdad. | At least 54 people have been killed and over 140 injured in two car bombs in a main square in central Baghdad. |
| Reports say the blasts went off simultaneously - one in a parked car and the other in a vehicle driven by a suicide bomber. | Reports say the blasts went off simultaneously - one in a parked car and the other in a vehicle driven by a suicide bomber. |
| A police spokesman said it appeared that the bombs were aimed at a police patrol and a crowd of Iraqis gathering to apply for jobs as day labourers. | A police spokesman said it appeared that the bombs were aimed at a police patrol and a crowd of Iraqis gathering to apply for jobs as day labourers. |
| Gunfire could be heard immediately after the explosions. | Gunfire could be heard immediately after the explosions. |
| It was not clear whether it involved police or insurgents staging a co-ordinated attack. | It was not clear whether it involved police or insurgents staging a co-ordinated attack. |
| The square is located near several government ministries and a bridge which crosses the Tigris River to the heavily fortified Green Zone, where the Iraqi parliament and the American and British embassies are located. | The square is located near several government ministries and a bridge which crosses the Tigris River to the heavily fortified Green Zone, where the Iraqi parliament and the American and British embassies are located. |
| 'Bees to honey' | 'Bees to honey' |
| The explosions occurred about 30m (100ft) apart and set fire to at least 10 other cars in the area, police told AP news agency. | The explosions occurred about 30m (100ft) apart and set fire to at least 10 other cars in the area, police told AP news agency. |
| They said a pickup van packed with explosives detonated in the busy Tayaran Square in the Rusafa district of the city. | They said a pickup van packed with explosives detonated in the busy Tayaran Square in the Rusafa district of the city. |
| The vehicle was offering daily work to the gathered labourers, they said - attracting a large crowd before the explosion. | The vehicle was offering daily work to the gathered labourers, they said - attracting a large crowd before the explosion. |
| "They came like bees to honey," an interior ministry official told AFP news agency. | "They came like bees to honey," an interior ministry official told AFP news agency. |
| Seconds later, a nearby parked car also exploded, police said. | Seconds later, a nearby parked car also exploded, police said. |
| Khalil Ibrahim, 41, a shop owner told AP news agency: "In the first explosion, I saw people falling over, some of them blown apart. When the other bomb went off seconds later, it slammed me into a wall of my store and I fainted." | Khalil Ibrahim, 41, a shop owner told AP news agency: "In the first explosion, I saw people falling over, some of them blown apart. When the other bomb went off seconds later, it slammed me into a wall of my store and I fainted." |
| Witnesses described thick, black smoke rising from the site. |