At least 10 people were killed, including two Iraqi soldiers, and dozens wounded in separate attacks in Baghdad, security officials said on Thursday.

The deadliest incident occurred at around 10:00 pm (1900 GMT) Wednesday evening in the sprawling Shiite stronghold of Sadr City, north Baghdad, when a car bomb in front of a cafe killed eight people and wounded 32 others.

The blast left several cars burned while the cafe and three houses were badly damaged, a defence ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

On Thursday two Iraqi soldiers were killed and seven wounded when a bomb they were trying to defuse exploded along the road connecting Baghdad with Mahmudiyah, 30 kilometres (18 miles) to the south, an interior ministry official said.

The official added that in a separate incident in central Baghdad, seven people were wounded by a bomb targeting a police vehicle.

The number of Iraqis killed in violence in April fell slightly month on month but was almost unchanged from 12 months ago -- 328 people died as a result of attacks last month.