BAGHDAD, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Five people were killed in an explosion near the Health Ministry in central Baghdad on Tuesday, police said.

Another 15 people were wounded in the blast, they said, which may have been caused by a car bomb or by mortar fire.

In the east Baghdad district of Zayouna, a car bomb killed two people and wounded five others, police said.

Sunni Islamist al Qaeda militants have pledged a renewed campaign of violence to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which started last week.

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