U.S. officials said American soldiers were attending a meeting of a neighborhood
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued a statement condemning the attack and offering "heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims of this heinous attack."
U.S. officials said American soldiers were attending a meeting of a neighborhood action committee about 150 yards from the blast site but it was unclear if they were the target.
"This is a senseless and tragic event," said Lt. Col. Steve Stover, a spokesman for the U.S. military's Baghdad command. "What's to gain by terrorizing the population? ...This is simply an evil act."
U.S. commanders have warned repeatedly that the relative peace in Baghdad is fragile because extremists, including al-Qaida in Iraq and Shiite militant groups, remain capable of high-profile attacks.
The Americans hope that security measures are enough to prevent extremists from mounting a sustained campaign of bombings against civilians that could provoke a return to sectarian reprisal attacks.
Despite the uncertainty, Iraqi officials have been eager to promote a sense of confidence among the war-weary Iraqi people after months of declining bloodshed in the capital.
Deputy parliamentary speaker Khalid al-Attiyah told lawmakers Tuesday that they will move from the convention center in the Green Zone to the Saddam Hussein-era National Assembly building for their next legislative term, which begins Sept. 1.
The move could help parliament affirm its independence from the Americans and shed its public image as an institution isolated from its people inside the U.S.-protected enclave.
"There is progress in the security situation and the reconstruction has been completed of the new building," al-Attiyah said, adding the new accommodations will be large enough for the full 275-member legislature and staff members.
The National Assembly building was used by the Iraqi parliament under Saddam and is located in the Allawi district, a religiously mixed area about 500 yards from the blast walls that form the perimeter of the Green Zone on the west side of the Tigris River.
It was looted and burned during the chaos that followed the fall of Baghdad to U.S. forces in April 2003. But al-Attiyah said its reconstruction has been completed.
Also Tuesday, an Iraqi state television journalist, Muhieddin Abdul-Hamid, was shot to death near his apartment in the northern city of Mosul, officials said.
Colleagues said the 50-year-old journalist was a local anchor for the TV station in Mosul, the focus of an ongoing U.S.-Iraqi operation against the last major urban stronghold of al-Qaida in Iraq.
Excluding Abdul-Hamid, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists says at least 129 journalists and 50 media support workers have been killed since the U.S. invasion in 2003.
In other violence Tuesday, a suicide bomber on a motorcycle struck a Baghdad checkpoint manned by U.S.-allied fighters, killing one and wounding four, officials said.
Another suicide car bomber attacked a police checkpoint in Baqouba, northeast of Baghdad, killing one policeman and wounding 19 other people, officials said.
Gunmen also killed a senior police officer and two of his guards near Aziziyah, a Shiite area 35 miles southeast of Baghdad.
The chairmen of the Chinese mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) and the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) on Thursday convened their first talks in nine years.
ARATS chairman Chen Yunlin and SEF chairman Chiang Pin-kun started their talks at around 9 a.m. in Beijing.
Chen Yinlin said, "Since March this year, positive changes have taken place in cross-Strait relations.
"As wished by people on the two sides, the talks resumed today after nearly 10 years' suspension.
"At this important historical moment, we must remember the late ARATS chairman Wang Daohan and SEF chairman Koo Chen-fu when we shake hands," he said.
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"Though they have passed away, their contributions to the improvement in cross-Strait relations are engraved on our minds," he said.
"We will carry on their unfinished tasks.
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"We feel the great responsibility of this glorious mission and we must spare no effort in realizing the aspirations of people on the two sides," he said.
The ARATS and SEF are authorized non-governmental organizations engaged in talks on issues related to exchanges across the Taiwan Strait.
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The ARATS was established in Beijing on December 16, 1991, aimed at promoting cross-Strait exchanges, developing cross-Strait relations and realizing a peaceful reunification of China.
The SEF was established in Taipei on November 21, 1990. It was authorized by the Mainland Affairs Council under the "Executive Yuan" of Taiwan to deal with cross-Strait affairs deemed "inconvenient" for the Taiwan authority to handle.
Chen expressed his hope that the ARATS and SEF could reach consensus and sign an agreement as soon as possible during the talks.
"Many problems in economic, cultural and social fields need to be addressed after a long time was idled away," he said.
"We sincerely hope we can seize this opportunity to promptly and actively exchange views so as to outline practical plans based on the expectations and benefits of the people on the two sides," he said.
In 1992, the two organizations held negotiations in Hong Kong on how to state "adherence to the one-China policy" and reached the "1992 Consensus".
In 1993, ARATS chairman Wang Daohan and SEF chairman Koo Chen-fu held talks in Singapore in the first public meeting between high-level figures in the name of non-governmental organization leaders since 1949.
The meeting between Wang and Koo established an institutionalized negotiation mechanism and marked an important step forward in the cross-Strait relations.
During the meeting, four agreements were signed to promote trade and people-to-people exchanges.
After the meeting, more than 20 consultations at different levels were held. In 1998, Wang and Koo held meeting again in Shanghai.
Talks between the two sides were suspended in 1999 after Taiwan leader at the time Li Teng-hui proposed his "special state-to-state" model for cross-Strait relations.
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