Three motorcycle bomb attacks kill 8 in Iraq’s Basra

At least eight people were killed and dozens wounded when three motorcycle bombs exploded in Iraq’s southern oil hub Basra on Wednesday, security officials said.

The explosions occurred outside three cafes on a street in central Basra, 420 km (260 miles) southeast of Baghdad.

“The initial toll is 8 killed, 22 wounded,” said Ali al-Maliki, head of the Basra provincial council’s security committee.

Brigadier Faisal al-Abadi, head of Basra police, put the toll at two killed and 30 others wounded.

A Reuters witness at the scene said there was little damage, with some broken glass on the road and traces of blood.

Security remains a concern in Iraq ahead of a full U.S. withdrawal by Dec. 31, almost nine years after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

Bombings and attacks still occur daily, although overall violence has dropped from the height of sectarian fighting in 2006-7.

The number of people killed in Iraq in October was the highest this year following a string of suicide and roadside bombings in the capital Baghdad.