Violence across Iraq, including bombings against Shias, killed 27 people on Wednesday as worshippers massed in a shrine city on the eve of major commemoration rituals often targeted by militants.
The bloodshed was the latest in a months-long surge in unrest that has forced PMNuri al-Maliki to appeal for US help in combating militancy as Iraqi action has failed to stem the unrelenting wave of attacks. Bombings mostly struck north and west of Baghdad, targeting Shia Muslims and members of the security forces.
On the outskirts of Baquba, north of the capital and one of Iraq's most violent areas, three coordinated bombs struck a gathering of Shia pilgrims marking Ashura.
Eight people were killed and 28 others were wounded in the blasts, security and medical officials said.Millions of Shiites from Iraq and around the world mark Ashura, which this year climaxes tomorrow, by setting up procession tents where food is distributed to passers-by and pilgrims can gather, or by walking to Karbala, which is home to a shrine to Imam Hussein.
Hussein, grandson of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed, was killed by the armies of the caliph Yazid in 680 AD and his death in Karbala has over time come to symbolise the split between Islam's Sunni and Shiite sects.