69 dead as bomb blast rips through market in Baghdad

A BOMB ripped through a crowded market in Baghdad's main Shia district yesterday, killing at least 69 people and wounding more than 100 less than a week before a deadline for US combat troops to leave Iraq's urban areas.

A series of blasts this week have killed more than 160 people, as US and Iraqi officials warned they expected more violence before the US withdrawal.

American troops have already begun pulling back from the joint bases that they occupied with Iraqi security forces.

The recent spike in violence has raised new concerns about the ability of Iraqi forces to protect the people, but a US military spokesman insisted that American combat troops would be out of the cities by Tuesday.

Brigadier General Steve Lanza said the recent high-profile attacks, which are usually blamed on Sunni insurgents, were part of an effort to rekindle sectarian violence that pushed the country to the brink of civil war.

"What's important is that the people have not responded to this," he said.

In the past, bombings in Shia areas would be followed by mortar attacks against Sunni strongholds or execution-style killings that were the signature of Shia militias.