At least 26 people are killed Saturday after five car bombs target Shi'ite neighborhoods in Baghdad.
This latest round of violence comes as government forces and allied Shi'ite militia are trying to push back Sunni insurgents.
They swept through northern Iraq last month and are within striking distance of Baghdad.
Baghdad faces a political crisis with no government formed some three months after parliamentary elections.
Shi'ite caretaker Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is trying to form a government -- but faces opposition from Sunnis, Kurds and some Shi'ites.
Iraq's Shi'ite clergy as well as Western powers are pressing politicians to break the deadlock and form a unity government.
The hope is to tackle the insurgency and prevent Iraq from splitting apart.
