Two killed, 18 wounded, in Baghdad bombing

Two people were killed and 18 wounded when a bomb exploded in a square in central Baghdad today.

The explosion occurred at 10am local time on the main Tahrir Square, a commercial area that has been targeted by bombers several times in the past few months.

Police Lt. Ahmed Ali said the blast killed two civilians and wounded 18 others.

A building exploded on the square on May 25, killing three people and wounding 11, and police said they suspected a bomb-making factory had blown up.

Elsewhere in the capital, police Capt. Amir Kamil, who provided security for Yarmouk hospital, was shot dead today at a bus station, said Capt. Jamil Hussein.

Gunmen riding motorcycles also killed a traffic policeman near his house in Amarah, 180 miles south-east of Baghdad. The murdered policeman was a former member of Saddam Hussein’s Fedayeen militia, said Capt. Raad Mosa.

The attacks against police came a day after gunmen in speeding cars killed Brig. Hudairi al-Janabi, the chief of police in the former insurgent stronghold of Fallujah, 40 miles west of Baghdad.