A first blast went off underneath a car in Baghdad's mainly Shi'ite Washash neighbourhood followed by a second blast as emergency officials were trying to help wounded and then a third blast detonated nearby, police said.

"We were stationed nearby when we heard a blast. When we turned around we saw the light from the blast and we took our cars over to help the wounded," local police officer Yahya Qasim said at the site.

"A second blast went off less than 100 meters away. We were in total confusion, but we tried to evacuate the wounded."

Hospital sources and local police said at least 10 people were killed and another 18 were wounded.

Violence in Iraq has fallen sharply since the height of sectarian slaughter in 2006-2007, but Sunni Islamist insurgents and Shi'ite militias still carry out daily attacks just as the last U.S. troops prepare to withdraw at year-end.

Reuters