Soldiers, civilians and members of the government-backed Sahwa
militia of Sunni ex-insurgents were among the casualties in the Amiriya
district of the Iraqi capital, the source said.
Overall violence in Iraq has dropped sharply since the height
of sectarian war in 2006-07.
But political uncertainty following an inconclusive March 7 election
has fueled a spike in violence over the past two months.
Iraq's new parliament is due to convene on Monday, but a government
has yet to be formed.
The cross-sectarian Iraqiya alliance led by former Prime Minister
Iyad Allawi narrowly won the vote with the heavy backing of voters from Iraq's
once-dominant Sunni minority.
But he faces being outmaneuvred by the main Shiite blocs of incumbent
Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki and firebrand anti-US cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr, who
have announced a tie-up.
Coalition talks threaten to drag into the next phase of US military
withdrawal, with the US working to formally end combat operations by Sept. 1,
cutting its military force from just under 90,000 to 50,000.
Iraqi security forces and members of the Sahwa militia appear
to be bearing the brunt of the violence. The Sahwa, or Sons of Iraq, are former
Sunni insurgents who switched sides to fight Sunni Islamist Al-Qaeda and helped
turn the tide of the war.
(Editing by Elizabeth Fullerton)
