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Bodies found near Baghdad school Iraq oil blast kills at least 20
(about 2 hours later)
Iraqi police have found 11 bodies near a school in a south-western district of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. At least 20 people have been killed by an explosion at an oil pipeline in southern Iraq, reports say.
It is not known who the victims were, but police say they had been tortured and shot in the head and chest. The victims are believed to have been siphoning fuel from the pipeline in an industrial zone south of Diwaniya, 130km (80 miles) south of Baghdad.
This comes at a time when US and Iraqi security forces are engaged in a new security operation aimed at reducing the level of violence in the city. The explosion caused a massive fire, which police say is hampering the rescue effort.
In a separate development, police have found 11 bodies near a school in a south-western district of Baghdad.
Diwaniya was the scene on Monday of fierce clashes between Iraqi troops and Shia militiamen.
At least 19 soldiers were killed and more than 40 people were wounded in Diwaniya. Officials said some 40 gunmen from the Mehdi Army had also died.
Security operation
After the bodies were found near the Baghdad school, police said the victims had been tortured and shot in the head and chest. Their identities are not known.
It comes at a time when US and Iraqi security forces are engaged in a new security operation aimed at reducing the level of violence in the city.
Also on Tuesday, insurgents killed two Shia militiamen in the city of Baquba north of Baghdad.Also on Tuesday, insurgents killed two Shia militiamen in the city of Baquba north of Baghdad.
Iraqi police told the AFP news agency that the militiamen were killed in an attack on the office of radical cleric Moqtada Sadr.Iraqi police told the AFP news agency that the militiamen were killed in an attack on the office of radical cleric Moqtada Sadr.
Insurgents armed with rocket propelled grenades attacked the office and also set off a bomb against the compound's outer wall.Insurgents armed with rocket propelled grenades attacked the office and also set off a bomb against the compound's outer wall.
The US military in Iraq announced on Tuesday that two US soldiers died in Iraq - one in fighting in Anbar province and the second from injuries sustained in a vehicle accident.The US military in Iraq announced on Tuesday that two US soldiers died in Iraq - one in fighting in Anbar province and the second from injuries sustained in a vehicle accident.