Iraqi Violence Escalates, Political Deadlock Continues...

Associated Press QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA April 15, 2006 at 07:00 PM

A car bomb killed at least seven people on a busy avenue Saturday as Shiite politicians floated a proposal to end the standoff over a new government by having Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari step down -- but only if his replacement comes from his own party.

The blast occurred at lunchtime outside an east Baghdad restaurant frequented by police officers, four of whom were among the 24 injured, Sgt. Sabah Mohsen said. All the dead were civilians, police said.

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