The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Baghdad

Nearly simultaneous bombs struck commuters in a predominantly Shiite area on the southeastern edge of Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least eight people and wounding two dozen, police and hospital officials said.

The two blasts, which occurred about 30 yards apart at 7 a.m. in Jisr Diyala, were targeting government employees, construction workers and vendors preparing to travel into the capital, according to the officials.

Women and children were among the eight killed and 24 wounded, which also included three policemen who had been sipping tea bought from a vendor, the officials said.

The explosives were buried in a dirt-packed area where minibuses pick up people traveling to the nearby Baghdad neighborhood of Zafaraniyah and the center of the city. Vendors were selling pastries, juice and tea.

Mohammed Nuaman, a 36-year-old store owner who was wounded by shrapnel in the shoulder, said rescue efforts were complicated by a damaged bridge. The bridge, which spans the Diyala River, a Tigris tributary, to connect the area with Baghdad proper, was hit by two bombings in May and was still under repair.

"I heard a big explosion at the bus station area and another bomb went off about 30 seconds later, as I was heading to the area," Nuamen said.