Twin bombs ripped through a crowded district in central Baghdad on Wednesday, killing 18 and injuring at least 52, the Dubai based al-Arabiya TV reported.
A suicide bomber in a car detonated himself near a police checkpoint in Nahda district; the second bomb exploded moments later targeting people who rushed to the scene of the explosion, a police source said.
Some policemen were among the dead, the channel reported.
Nahda is a crowded district in Baghdad known for its shops and restaurants.
The last deadliest attack of this kind took place on December 11 when a suicide bomber blew himself up in a restaurant in northern Iraq, killing 45 and injuring 85, reported dpa.