Violence grows with twin car-bomb attack: at least 20 dead.

By Lucia Miyashita

At least 20 people have been killed in a twin car-bomb attack near the southern Iraqi city of Karbala, officials say.

The blasts went off on the road from the nearby city of Najaf, which is often crowded with Shia pilgrims travelling to shrines.

Hospital officials told reporters dozens of people were wounded as they gathered in Karbala to celebrate the birthday of the 9th century Imam Muhammad al-Mehdi.

Although the level of violence in Iraq has decreased since 2007 when the Sunnis and Shias were caught in a bloody sectarian conflict, people fear the number of deaths will rise if the country continues to remain without a government.

Shia pilgrims are still the main targets for Sunni insurgents who have been exploiting Iraq’s power vacuum since the elections in March, killing hundreds of people and injuring thousands.