Huge explosions were heard in the city, home to 5 million people, the Arabic-language news network said.

Baghdad has been under devastating bombings daily over the past 10 days since the outbreak of the US-led war on Iraq on March 20.

Iraq has since fought against the invaders in its central and southern key cities, who have been managing to move northward toward Baghdad to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

Earlier in the day, Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan said the Iraqis would launch more suicide bombings against the coalition troops on the battlefield.

"This is just the beginning," he told reporters, referring to an Iraqi suicide bomber who carried out a car bombing on Saturday and killed five US soldiers at a checkpoint in the city of Najaf, 160 km south of Baghdad.

Defying international opposition, the United States and Britain launched a war on Iraq on March 20, in a bid to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

Iraq has denounced the invaders as "criminals" and "villains," while urging the international community to stop the "aggression" unconditionally.

(Xinhua News Agency March 30, 2003)