Five car bombs kill 18 in Iraq

BAGHDAD: Five car bombs on Monday killed 18 people south of Baghdad, the latest deaths in a week of violence, as Iraq's parliament speaker called for the government to resign to ease spiralling tensions.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki met Nechirvan Barzani, the premier of the autonomous Kurdistan region, with both agreeing to enhance security coordination after the deployment of Kurdish forces in disputed Kirkuk province threatened another crisis.

In the deadliest of the series of attacks on Monday, two car bombs exploded in Amara in south Iraq, killing seven people and wounding 51, a senior police officer and a doctor said.

Three other car bombs detonated in Mahmudiyah, Karbala and Diwaniyah, leaving 11 people dead and 55 wounded, police and medical sources said.

A wave of violence began on Tuesday last week when security forces clashed with anti-government protesters near the town of Hawijah in northern Iraq, killing 53 people.

The protesters have called for the resignation of Maliki, and railed against authorities for allegedly targeting their community with wrongful detentions and accusations of involvement in terrorism. (AFP)