Baghdad ( CNN ) -- At least nine people were killed and at least 72 others wounded Tuesday when four car bombs and a roadside bomb exploded in mostly Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdad , police officials said . The first two attacks took place in Sadr City , an area in eastern Baghdad , police said . A car bomb exploded in al-Mudhafar Square , near a group of laborers who were waiting to be picked up for a daily job , police said . A few minutes later , a second car bomb exploded near a busy fuel station . Police said seven people were killed and 35 people were injured in the attacks in Sadr City , which is home to about 1.5 million people . A third car bomb exploded on a road in the al-Hurriya neighborhood in southwestern Baghdad , killing at least one person and wounding 13 others , police said . In a fourth attack , a roadside bomb wounded six people when it exploded near Adan Square in northwestern Baghdad . And a fifth explosion , a car bomb , blew up near an elementary school in the Shulaa neighborhood of northwestern Baghdad , police said . Two people were killed , and 18 others -- including some students from the elementary school -- were wounded . Since the beginning of this year , a wave of attacks in Iraq have killed almost 200 people . Most of those killed were Shiites marking Arbaeen , a Shiite pilgrimage at the end of a 40-day period commemorating the seventh century Imam Hussain , who was killed in a battle . The latest attacks raised concerns among ordinary people about the ability of Iraqi security forces to ensure security in this country , particularly after the United States withdrew troops by the end of 2011 . However , Iraqi people are more concerned now about the political crisis . Last week , Iraq 's Council of Ministers decided to ban members who are boycotting Cabinet meetings , a government spokesman said . The banned ministers will not be allowed to manage their ministries , according to spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh . Last month , the Sunni-backed Iraqiya party announced it would boycott parliament and Cabinet meetings , saying Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki , a Shiite , was cutting the party out of the decision-making process . Iraqiya spokeswoman Maysoun Damluji said the Iraqiya bloc was not surprised by the prime minister 's move , calling it unconstitutional and illegal . Iraq 's political crisis deepened last year when a warrant was issued for Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi , who is accused of organizing his security detail into a death squad that targeted government and military officials . Al-Hashimi has denied the charges , saying the accusations are politically motivated amid the rivalry between his political bloc and al-Maliki 's Shiite majority bloc . In recent weeks , Iraq 's Kurdish president , Jalal Talabani , called for a `` national conference '' to address the political crisis . But in the past week , a number of Sunni politicians who are members of Iraqiya bloc were arrested in Baghdad and Diyala province , officials with Iraqiya bloc said . Diyala 's deputy governor in charge of investment , Ghadban al-Khazraji , was arrested Friday by Iraqi security forces . Former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi recently accused al-Maliki of targeting al-Iraqiya members and deepening the political crisis . Allawi warned al-Maliki that if the national conference fails , he will have no choice but to call for changing the prime minister and call for early elections , or the Iraqiya bloc will completely withdraw from the political process -- a move that could bring Iraqi politics to complete standstill .
A blast near an elementary school kills two and injures 18 , including some students . Five attacks take place in mostly Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdad . They include four car bombings and a roadside bomb attack . Two explosions take place in Sadr City , an area in eastern Baghdad .