Baghdad was hit by four suicide bomb attacks in 45 minutes yesterday, killing 35 people and injuring 224.

The attacks included a bomb at the headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross, where 12 people died.

The foreign secretary, Jack Straw, said he was shocked at the attacks but the coalition "would not be deterred" by the incidents.

Loyalists of Saddam Hussein and foreign fighters with links to al Qaeda were blamed for the co-ordinated blasts.