27 dead after Iraq bomb attacks

A series of car bombings in Iraq has killed at least 27 people and injured nearly 100.

The attacks appeared to target Shia pilgrims, as reports.
Shi'ite Muslims are celebrating the religious festival Ashoura, which marks the death of the prophet Mohammed's grandson in the Iraqi city of Karbala in a battle in the 680 that hardened the rift between Shia and Sunni Muslims.
Two bombs exploded near a busy bus station at Hillah, a town about 40 kilometres from Karbala.
A second incident in Baghdad targeted a funeral in mostly Shi'ite Sadr City. And across town a fourth bomb killed at least three people.
On Sunday, hundreds of thousands of Shi'ite pilgrims are expected to converge on Karbala for a final day of ritual mourning.