Baghdad Car Bombs Kill at Least 9

Car bomb explosions on two commercial streets in the Iraqi capital killed at least nine people and wounded more than 30 others on Monday, security and medical officials said.

One of the bombs struck Mansur in west Baghdad, while the other hit Amil in the capital's south.

Bombings and shootings in Baghdad were once a daily occurrence, but have declined since the Islamic State jihadist group launched a major offensive last June, seizing control of large areas north and west of the capital.

That has tied them down in fighting outside Baghdad.

Iraqi security forces and allied paramilitaries have retaken significant amounts of territory from IS in recent months, with backing from a U.S.-led coalition carrying out air strikes and training, as well as from Iran.

But large parts of two provinces -- Nineveh in the north and Anbar in the west -- remain under IS control.