A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest blew himself up in a crowded Baghdad restaurant frequented by the security forces during breakfast yesterday, killing 35 people and wounding at least 25 more, police said.

"Body parts are all over the place, we are still collecting them," a police officer at the scene said.

It was one of the biggest attacks in the Iraqi capital in recent months and came the day after three hotel bombs in the Jordanian capital Amman killed 57 people in an apparently co-ordinated attack claimed by al-Qaida in Iraq.

The security forces protecting the US-backed, Shi'ite-led government have been frequent targets of Sunni Arab rebels and Islamist al-Qaida groups led by Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The police officer said at least four Iraqi police patrols were having their breakfast at the restaurant when the bomber struck. A police explosives expert on the scene said that the bomber was also carrying a bag full of explosives.

"A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest went into a restaurant," another police official said shortly after the loud blast which could be heard from several kilometers away, rocking the city shortly after 9:30 AM (06:30 GMT).

The official said the restaurant, which was crowded with diners, was known to be frequented by soldiers and police.

One witness, Kadhem Mohammed, said two Iraqi army cars had arrived at the restaurant around 15 minutes before the blast. "It targeted the Iraqi army, police and civilians because the restaurant was full of people," he said.

A police officer who identified himself only as Ahmed said: "We were on patrol ... We heard the blast and I was the first one to arrive on the scene. There were 32 dead and some of the wounded died while we were taking them to hospital." 

(China Daily November 11, 2005)