Iraq police report finding 30 corpses at two sites

In the last two days police in Iraq have found 35 corpses at two sites; one find was in a field in the west of the country near to Qaim, the other at a former army base to the south of Baghdad.

The discovery of the bodies near Qaim, all of which are apparently civilians who died from multiple gunshot wounds, was made yesterday in a field near Rumana a village close to the city of Qaim near the Syrian border.

It is thought that the victims may have been killed over a week ago.

The previous day, 15 decapitated bodies, some of them reported to be women and children, were discovered at a disused military base south of Baghdad.

Today a suicide bomber detonated a truck packed with explosives in Baghdad outside the Iraqi agriculture ministry and close to the heavily guarded Sadeer Hotel which is used by western contractors and Iraqi officials. At least three people were killed in the explosion and over 20 injured.

Police said that they believed that the hotel had been the main target of the bomber.

In Basra, southern Iraq, a police patrol came under attack with a roadside bomb. One policeman was reported killed and three others injured.

Attacks throughout Iraq have been increasing after a short respite following a concerted campaign of attacks in the run-up to the elections held at the end of January.

(SP)