BAGHDAD, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least two were killed and 16 others wounded in two car bomb explosions in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Monday, an Interior Ministry source said.

The first car bombing occurred in the afternoon in Saadoun Street in downtown Baghdad, killing a civilian and wounding seven others, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Another car bomb went off near al-Samarrai mosque in New Baghdad district in the southern part of the capital, killing a civilian and wounding nine, the source said.

Violence is still common in the Iraqi cities despite the dramatic decrease since its peak in 2006 and 2007 when the country was engulfed in sectarian killings.