At least 36 people have been killed in shootings, mortar and bomb attacks in Baghdad, Iraqi officials have said.

In northern Baghdad, at least 15 people died and several were injured when gunmen attacked a bus carrying civilian employees of a Shia religious group.

Shortly afterwards, at least 15 people were killed and some 25 wounded in three car bomb blasts near a petrol station in a south-western district.

Iraq has seen daily sectarian violence between Shia and Sunni communities.

A US soldier was killed and five injured when gunmen attacked a military convoy in the Iraqi capital on Monday, the US military said.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has meanwhile announced Iraq will this month hold a conference aimed at tackling the spiraling unrest.

Members of all political parties will be invited to the meeting, which will take place after envoy have been sent to neighboring countries to canvass their views.

"We will hold a conference for political parties and entities this month," Mr Maliki said. "We will agree on a charter of honor to end the bloodshed of Iraqis and sectarian conflict."

"Countries that are keen on the stability and security of Iraq" will also be invited to participate, he said.

'Civil war'

In a separate development, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh said both his government and the US had to talk to Iran and Syria if they were to deal with the growing violence.

He told the BBC that that Iraq had depended too much on Washington, forgetting its neighbors.

In Washington, the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, which is issuing its report Wednesday, is expected to recommend talks with Syria and Iran as part of a reappraisal of US policy.

On Monday, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told the BBC the violence was now "worse than a civil war".

The Iraqi government dismissed Mr Annan's suggestion, saying life was much worse under ousted leader Saddam Hussein.

Roadside bomb

The victims of the bus attack in northern Baghdad were employees of the Shia Endowment - a body that oversees religious sites and mosques.

The gunmen first set off a car bomb before spraying the bus with bullets.

The car blasts in the south-west of the city happened at about 0945 local time (0745 GMT) in a mixed Sunni and Shia area, police said.

Most of the victims were people queuing for petrol.

Another car bomb exploded in Baghdad's Shia neighborhood of Amil, killing two people, while another two where killed in a mortar attack on a Baghdad market.

A roadside bomb targeted an Iraqi army convoy in the largely Sunni Yarmouk district, killing two troops and injuring four.

Photo Caption

The wreckage of a car bomb at the site where the15 employees of a shia group were killed