Baghdad cafe blast leaves 17 dead

At least 17 people have been killed and 20 injured in an explosion in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

The blast happened on Tuesday in a Shia neighbourhood in the north of the city.

A suicide bomber detonated his explosive belt after walking into the crowded Greyaat cafe in the district at about 2140 local time (1840 GMT).

The attack is the worst since a death sentence was passed on Saddam Hussein on Sunday and a curfew in the capital, which was lifted earlier on Tuesday.

Five people were also killed and 26 injured in a mortar attack in the nearby Adhamiya district, which is a predominantly Sunni district.

There was an intense exchange of mortar fire between gunmen in Adhamiya (a Sunni district) and Kadhamiya (a Shia district), which are on opposite banks of the River Tigris in the city centre, says the BBC's Hugh Sykes in Baghdad.

So far, the dead ahev all been reported from Adhamiya.

Another mortar attack in the city centre killed three people and a car bomb killed at least one passer-by, our correspondent adds.

Curfew fears

Tough restrictions on the movement of people and vehicles were imposed on Baghdad ahead of the announcement of Sunday's verdict.

There had been fears that the announcement would prompt an upsurge in attacks by Sunni extremists angry at the judgement.

Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death by hanging after being found guilty over the killing of 148 people in the mainly Shia town of Dujail following an assassination attempt on him in 1982.