Dozens Killed In Baghdad Car Bombings

Two more car bombs have rocked Baghdad, reportedly killing at least 22 people, hours after a bombing in the Iraqi capital reportedly claimed at least 63 lives.

One blast hit the entrance to Kadhimiya, a predominately Shiite Muslim district in the northwest of the Iraqi capital. Reports say at least 15 people were killed.

Another bomb went off in a mostly Sunni district of western Baghdad, reportedly killing seven and wounding 20. 

The first blast, also a car bombing, happened during Wednesday morning's rush hour at a crowded market in a predominantly Shiite area of Baghdad's eastern district of Sadr City.

It set nearby shops and market stalls on fire, as a crowd of angry residents and investigators gathered at the scene and around the charred remains of the car.

A beauty salon and adjacent barber shop were among the buildings caught in the blast, and the many victims were said to include brides and grooms getting ready for their weddings.

One witness said: "Young people want to live in this market. Security forces are unable to control security.

"They (the government) say that they have metal detectors to detect explosives. I wonder where such detectors are? How can such car bombs go though checkpoints?''

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the later bombs, but Islamic State, which considers Shiite Muslims as heretics, claimed responsibility for the first attack.

Iraqi officials denied the group's claim that the assault was carried out by a suicide bomber it named as Abu Sulaiman al-Ansari.

Earlier this month, at least 18 Shia Muslim pilgrims were killed and 45 others injured by an IS car bomb in the Saydiyah neighbourhood of the Iraqi capital.

The attack also comes just days after the Pentagon announced that asenior Islamic State leader in Iraq's Anbar province had been killed by a US airstrike.

The strike targeted a vehicle carrying Abu Wahib - military emir for Anbar province and a former member of al Qaeda in Iraq.

Three other IS members were also killed in the strike, near the town of Rutba.