A series of bomb attacks
has hit several Iraqi cities, killing at least 59 people.

The worst attack took place in the south-eastern city of Kut
where police said two near-simultaneous bombs killed at least 37 people.


The violence came as other attacks were reported in the
country, including in Diyala province where 10 people died.

Two weeks ago, Iraqi leaders said there would be talks with
the US over whether to keep some US forces in Iraq in 2012.

All US forces are due to leave the country by the end of the
year, but Iraqi and US officials have expressed concern about the
ability of Iraqi forces to protect the country.

The blasts appeared to be co-ordinated to go off in the
morning and included a combination of parked car bombs, roadside bombs
and suicide bombers. But there was no immediate claim of responsibility
for the attacks.

The latest violence was quickly condemned by the speaker of
parliament, Osama al-Nujaifi.

Twin attacks

In Kut, which lies 150m (95 miles)
south-east of Baghdad, the two bomb attacks - one a roadside bomb, the
other a car bomb - injured at least 64 people, officials say.

The roadside bomb exploded in the centre of the city, then a
car bomb detonated when security forces arrived on the scene, officials
said.

"I was on my way to my shop in the market and suddenly I felt
myself being thrown to the ground," Saadun Muftin, 26, told the AFP
news agency, speaking from the city's Karama hospital.

In Diyala province, at least five blasts resulted in the
deaths of at least 10 people.

There has been a recent flurry of violence across Iraq,
although it is much reduced since a peak in 2006-2007.

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