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Bombings Kill Dozens Of Mourners At Baghdad Funeral

In Baghdad's Sadr City, a bombing attack that struck during a funeral has killed dozens of people, with the death toll continuing to rise Saturday. Multiple reports are citing at least 65 deaths in the attack, one of several in Iraq today.

The funeral attack included three explosions, Reuters says: A car loaded with explosives blew up near a funeral tent; a suicide bomber who also may have been in a car detonated an explosive; and a third blast targeted emergency crews responding to the scene.

Citing a witness who was among the mourning families in the Shiite area, the AP says, "the first blast went off as dinner was being served in one of several tents set up for the funeral of a member of the al-Fartousi tribe."

The witness estimated that more than 500 people were present. The explosions set nearby tents and cars on fire, he said.

More than 100 people were wounded in the attack.

Update at 3:50 p.m. ET: Multiple Deadly Attacks In Iraq

We've rewritten the top of this post to reflect the details that emerged as the day wore on.

In addition to the funeral bombing, Agence France-Presse reports, deadly attacks also claimed the lives of 10 Iraqi security personnel Saturday.

"More than 540 people have now been killed so far this month and over 4,300 since the beginning of the year," reports AFP, citing its own calculations based on security and medical sources.

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Bill Chappell is a writer and editor on the News Desk in the heart of NPR's newsroom in Washington, D.C.
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