Seven bomb attacks killed at least 15 people in Baghdad Saturday with an apparent focus on Shiite Muslims, the Interior Ministry said.
Six Iranian Muslim pilgrims were among the dead as they rode on a bus to a Shiite shrine, The New York Times reported. The bombers also targeted outdoor markets, a public square and security patrols, the report said.
The number of people injured wasn't immediately known, but officials used the term "scores."
The attacks were carried out by at least one suicide bomber who smashed into a bus carrying Iranian tourists, while other explosives were planted in homes and buildings, the Times said.
The newspaper suggested the spike in violence is in response to the Iraqi government's restructuring after inconclusive elections in March. The report also inferred insurgents were reacting to a highly publicized declaration
Tuesday by the Interior Ministry 39 men had been arrested connected with terrorism charges. State television showed the men individually in their
orange prison jump suits, the report said.