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Diwaniya (Iraq), July 3 (Reuters): Bombs killed at least 44 people at markets in Iraq today, and authorities said they bore the hallmarks of sectarian attacks on Shias by al Qaida Sunni militants.
A bomb in a small truck exploded in a market in the city of Diwaniya, killing 40 people, and other blasts killed four more near the city of Karbala, police and officials said.
The Diwaniya bombing was near a Shia mosque where pilgrims gather on their way to Karbala to celebrate the birthday of one of their most important imams, al-Mahdi, this week. Police announced a partial curfew and blocked all entrances to Diwaniya, 150km south of Baghdad and 130km southeast of Karbala. Police sources said 75 people had been wounded.
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