An AFP journalist in central Baghdad heard a series of loud blasts around 11:15 pm (2015 GMT). The exact location was unclear.

The southern outskirts of the Iraqi capital were pounded by an especially intense bombardment earlier Tuesday that sent balls of fire and towers of black smoke into the sky.

On Tuesday morning, a missile or smart bomb exploded in the heart of the Republican Palace complex, the largest of eight of Saddam Hussein's presidential palaces in Baghdad.

The attack followed a dozen missiles that crashed into Baghdad overnight.

SPACE.WIRE