Twin bombings kill at least 22 in Iraq's Baghdad

Iraqi forces are trying to dislodge ISIL fighters from Fallujah

Commercial street and army checkpoint targeted in the capital as government forces try to dislodge ISIL from Fallujah.

More than 22 people have been killed and 70 wounded in bombings targeting a commercial street and an army checkpoint in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, Iraqi police say.

A car packed with explosives blew up in a commercial street of Baghdad al-Jadeeda, an eastern district of Baghdad, killing at least 15 people and wounding over 50, a police officer said.

Separately, a suicide car bomber targeted a main army checkpoint in Taji, just north of Baghdad, killing seven soldiers and wounding more than 20 others, the officer said.

In an online statement, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group claimed responsibility for the attack on the commercial street. No one has claimed responsibility for the other attack which comes as Iraqi forces are trying to dislodge ISIL fighters from Fallujah, their stronghold just west of Baghdad.

Up to 90,000 civilians are believed to still be inside Fallujah, according to the UN, which had earlier estimated the number to be 50,000.

In a telephone interview with the Reuters news agency in Baghdad on Wednesday, Lise Grande, UN humanitarian coordinator for Iraq, said civilians could face a "harrowing" situation in Fallujah, 50km west of the Iraqi capital.

"We have underestimated how many civilians are in Fallujah," she said. "People who are coming out are giving us the strong impression that we could be talking about maybe 80,000 to 90,000 civilians that are inside."