Iraq roadside bomb kills four

Roadside bombs killed three labourers and a policemen in Iraq today, a day after bombings and shootings left more than 70 people dead in a dramatic surge of bloodshed in the country, police said.

Yesterday’s dead included 20 Iraqi troops, a US soldier and a British soldier.

Early today, a bomb in a rubbish bag lying on a street in central Baghdad exploded near a group of labourers waiting to be hired for daily wage work, said police 1st Lt. Ahmed Mohammed Ali.

He said three labourers were killed and eight were injured.

Minutes later a second bomb, also hidden in a bag, exploded but caused no casualties, he said.

In the northern city of Mosul, a police patrol was hit by a roadside bomb today, killing one policeman and injuring four, said police 1st. Lt. Ahmed Khalil.

Also today, a man was killed when a bomb he was planting on a highway in northern Baghdad exploded, police Warrant Officer Mahoud Yassin said.