Baghdad, September 17 (RHC)-- At least 21 Iraqi people have been killed in two bomb explosions in mainly Shia neighborhoods of central Baghdad, a local media report says.

On Thursday morning, a car bomb blast rocked Baghdad's Bab al-Sharqi commercial neighborhood, killing at least nine civilians and three police officers. At least 45 others were injured in the attack.

The second explosion happened after an explosive package went off in the capital's al-Wathba Square, killing at least nine people, including four policemen, and wounding 31.

The United Nations' Assistance Mission for Iraq says a total of 1,325 Iraqis were killed and another 1,811 wounded in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in August. According to the UN mission, the number of civilian fatalities stood at 585.

Violence also claimed the lives of 740 members of the Iraqi security forces in the same month. Many of the fatalities were recorded in Baghdad Province, where 318 civilians were killed.