Christmas Day bombings in Iraq target Christians

(Vatican Radio) Iraqi officials say bombings targeting Christians in southern Baghdad have killed at least 34 people.

The deadliest blast happened Wednesday in the Dora neighbourhood of the capital. A car bomb there killed at least 24 people and wounded 30 others outside a church where worshippers took part in services for Christmas.

Another blast in a nearby area killed 10 people and wounded 14 others.

Churches have been targeted across the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.

An attack by gunmen in 2010 on the Catholic Cathedral in Baghdad left more than 50 people dead.

The United Nations says more than 8,000 people have been killed in Iraq this year, in what has been the worst violence to hit the country since 2008.

Listen to Nathan Morley's report: