Wave of deadly bombings in Baghdad

Baghdad (CNN) -- Fifteen bombs exploded Sunday within hours of one another in Baghdad, killing at least 18 people and wounding 80, Iraqi authorities said.

The bombings came the same day Britain wrapped up its military mission in Iraq, leaving a predominantly American military presence that is expected to disappear by the end of the year under a U.S.-Iraqi security pact that requires U.S. troops to withdraw from the country.

The blasts Sunday were the latest in a spate in recent weeks that have raised concerns about Iraq's ability to protect itself. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said he plans to meet with Iraqi political leaders this month to discuss whether to request U.S. troops remain in Iraq beyond the Jan. 1, 2012, withdrawal deadline.

Sunday's blasts were a mix of car bombs and roadside bombs that appeared to be targets of opportunity, striking Shiite and Sunni neighborhoods as well as Iraqi and U.S. security forces.

The bombings began early with a car bomb and four roadside bombs exploding in quick succession near the federal police headquarters in southwest Baghdad, killing two and wounding 15 others, two Interior Ministry officials said.

That was followed by a car bomb that targeted the convoy of an Interior Ministry official in eastern Baghdad, killing one person and wounding five others, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.

A U.S. convoy on the outskirts of Baghdad, near Taji, was targeted by a car bomb, the officials said. When Iraqi police and soldiers arrived to investigate the blast, a suicide bomber standing blew himself up and killed 12 people -- including members of the Iraqi security forces -- and wounded 23, officials said.

Two roadside bombs struck near a hospital and an outdoor market in Baghdad's Shiite enclave of Sadr City, killing two and wounding 12, while an explosion wounded three in the predominantly Sunni neighborhood of al-Saydiya, the two officials said.

Two more roadside bombs struck an Iraqi police patrol in central Baghdad, killing one and wounding 12, the officials said.

At least eight more people were wounded in three separate blasts in Baghdad, the officials said.

The U.N. office in Iraq has expressed concern over recent violence targeting government and security officials. Al-Maliki has said al Qaeda and other terrorists are behind the killings but also has blamed political movements and security guards. He promised to pursue the attackers.

The attacks came as Britain withdrew its remaining troops, primarily members of the Royal Navy, from Iraq. At the height of the war, Britain had deployed about 46,000 troops to Iraq as part of then President George Bush called the "Coalition of the Willing."

Britain will continue to support the NATO training mission in Iraq, according to Britain's Defence Ministry.

A small military contingent will remain in Baghdad to protect personnel at the British Embassy.

In Sadr City in eastern Baghdad, where much of the poor popuation is loyal to Shiite anti-American firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, some residents blamed the United States.

"I blame the occupier forces," said resident Kamel al-Fartossi, a truck driver, referring to U.S. troops. "The want to prove that Iraq is still an unstable country so they can stay longer."

Mohammed Abdul Hussein, a businessman, made a similar claim. "The Americans are behind today's attacks. They are doing this because they don't want to leave in six months," he said, as people around him started shouting, "No, no, America."

Still other, such as 71-year-old Abbass Muhssein, pointed to "al Qaeda and the Baathists" as the culprits behind Sunday's attacks. As people whispered in his ears that he should blame America, Muhssein refused. "No not the Americans. Why should I lie?" he said. The Iraqi army is not able to protect the country, he said. "We don't know what will happen after they (U.S troops) leave Iraq."

Um Ali , 53 years old, a mother of six and street vendor who sells vegetables, said this about Sunday's death and destruction: "What can we do? This is our destiny."

CNN's Chelsea J. Carter contributed to this report.

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Iraq: Car bomb near cafe kills 16 in Baghdad

BAGHDAD (AP) — A car bomb tore through a cafe packed with young men watching a football match Tuesday in Baghdad, killing at least 16 people, officials said. It was the first major attack since U.S. commandos killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

Nobody claimed responsibility for the attack, which struck a Shiite enclave in a mainly Sunni neighborhood, but it bore the hallmarks of the terror network's chapter in Iraq. Al-Qaida operatives have vowed revenge for bin Laden's death on Sunday.

Iraqi security officials said Monday that they were increasing security amid fears that insurgents would try to strike immediately following bin Laden's death as a way to show they are still a potent force.

Most of the dead and wounded were young people watching a football match, said police and hospital officials. A vendor selling food near the cafe also was among the 16 killed. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information, said 37 people also were wounded.

The attack occurred in a Shiite enclave in the former insurgent stronghold of Dora, an area in southwestern Baghdad that saw some of the fiercest fighting of the Iraq conflict.

Many Iraqis were quick to blame the terror network.

"This is the cowardly reaction of al-Qaida after the killing of the big terrorist bin Laden. They intend to do this against such gatherings in Shiite areas," Jasim Hashim, a 20-year-old student who lives about 200 yards (meters) from where the bomb went off in front of a popular cafe.

He said his parents had refused to let him go out, fearing just such an attack after bin Laden's capture, but one of his close friends was at the cafe and killed in the attack.

Violence in Iraq has decreased dramatically since the height of the insurgency when groups such as al-Qaida in Iraq carried out car bombs, kidnappings and shootings daily. But the terror groups still have the ability to wage violent attacks as the U.S. prepares to withdraw all its forces by the end of this year.

Earlier Tuesday, a police colonel in northern Iraq was killed by a roadside bomb, police and medical officials said. Colleagues of Eid al-Namis said he was known in the Namroud area, about 20 miles (35 kilometers) south of the northern city of Mosul, for his work in hunting al-Qaida operatives there.

According to a Mosul police officer, al-Namis had already survived at least three assassination attempts before he was killed Tuesday morning when the bomb hit his convoy. The police and medical officials also declined to be identified because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

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