Up to 33 killed in twin car bomb explosions in southern Iraq

Up to 33 people were killed and some 63 others wounded Sunday when two car bombs went off in the town of Samawa, the capital of Muthanna province, a security source said.

"Our reports said that the toll rose to 33 civilians were killed and 63 others wounded by the massive blasts of two car bombs in central Samawa," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The attacks occurred around noon when one booby-trapped car parking near the provincial government compound detonated, while another car bomb ripped through a busy parking lot in al-Sharji district in downtown Samawa, some 270 km south of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, the source said.

The massive blasts set fire to several nearby civilian cars and caused damaged to nearby buildings, the source added.

Earlier, the source put the toll at 20 killed and some 40 others wounded.

Iraq is currently witnessing a wave of violence since the Islamic State group took control of parts of Iraq's northern and western regions in June 2014.

Earlier, a report by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) estimated that 1,119 Iraqis were killed and 1,561 others wounded in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in March across Iraq.

Source: XINHUA