Fatal Car Blast in Iraqi City Of Baghdad

Reports of many casualties in attack apparently targeting Shia body’s headquarters in heart of Iraqi capital.

A powerful car bomb has exploded outside a Shia administration office in central Baghdad, killing several people and wounding many others, according to Iraqi officials.

There were conflicting reports of the initial death toll, with Iraqi officials telling The Associated Press news agency that at least 15 people were killed and up to 65 injured.

But hospital and police sources told Reuters that nine people were dead and about 40 wounded.

Monday’s blast targeted the Shia Endowment office – a government-run body that looks after Shia religious sites – damaging its headquarters and a nearby health administration office, police said.

Violence in Iraq has declined, but Sunni armed groups tied to al-Qaeda are still potent. They often attack Shia targets to try to stir up the kind of sectarian tensions that pushed the country close to civil war in 2006-2007.