Multiple bombings kill 40-plus in Iraq

BAGHDAD, July 9 (UPI) -- Two suicide bombings in a Shiite town in Iraq killed at least 34 people and a double explosion in Baghdad killed seven Thursday, officials said.

Police and local officials said two suicide bombers in Tal Afar, a town near the Syrian border, detonated their explosives, killing 34 civilians and wounding 70 others, The Washington Post reported.

The first suicide bomber blew himself up near the residence of a policeman in the anti-terrorism force, local officials said. When people gathered to provide assistance, the second bomber detonated his explosives.

In addition to the deaths, officials reported scores of people were wounded.

In Baghdad, a roadside explosive blew up near a market in Sadr City, followed by the detonation of another mine nearby, the Post reported. Seven were killed and 20 were injured, security and hospital officials said.

U.S combat troops withdrew from Iraqi cities June 30 as part of a security agreement.