Blasts at Iraqi market kill 5 south of Baghdad

BAGHDAD: An Iraqi official says a pair of car bombs has exploded at a livestock market in the south of the country, killing five and wounding dozens.

The head of the provincial council, Jubair al-Jabouri, says 70 people were wounded in the Friday attack in Diwaniyah.

He blamed the blasts on al-Qaida, though there was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Diwaniyah is 130 kilometers (80 miles) south of Baghdad.

Violence in Iraq has fallen since the height of sectarian fighting in 2006 and 2007, but deadly attacks are still frequent. Friday’s attacks come a day after bombings in Baghdad and towns south of the Iraqi capital killed at least 22 people.