Three car bombs exploded almost simultaneously in Balad, 90 km north of Baghdad, on Thursday, killing 62, a source from the Joint Coordination Center in Tikrit said.

"Now the latest death toll is 62 and over 100 were wounded," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

"After the first explosion, lots of people gathered at the scene to see what happened when the second bomb detonated, thus causing heavy casualties," the source said.

"Now ambulances from the nearby city of Tikrit are carrying the injured to hospitals in Balad and Dijal, 20 km south of Balad, and even to Baghdad," the source added.

Earlier, an Interior Ministry source said at least 37 were killed and 50 injured in the triple attacks.

"The first car bomb blew up at 6:30 PM (14:30 GMT) in central Balad. About 10 minutes later, the second car bomb exploded in the same street, and at 7:00 PM (15:00 GMT), the third bomb exploded in the nearby area of Bad al-Sour," the source said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 30, 2005)