Bombs rock Baghdad

A bomb on a minibus killed nine people in central Baghdad, sending clouds of thick smoke billowing into the sky, while a bomb planted inside a food market in a town north of Baghdad killed at least five and wounded 15, police said.

The blasts occurred despite a major security operation by thousands of American and Iraqi troops to restore order to the capital, where sectarian and Sunni insurgent violence claimed the lives of more than 3,000 Iraqis in July alone.

Police said 20 bodies had been found in various districts of Baghdad on Saturday. Some bore signs of torture and most had been killed by gunshots to the head, a typical feature of the communal bloodshed between the Shia and Sunni sects.

Maliki, whose government has struggled to contain the bloodshed, called on tribal leaders gathered in the capital on Saturday to use their influence to unite "Iraq's sons" to end violence that has raised fears of all-out civil war.

The car bomb exploded in the parking lot of al-Sabah daily in Baghdad's Waziriya district, killing a guard and another employee, wounding 18 and causing extensive damage to the building. A car bomb attack on the newspaper in May killed one.