Baghdad: Government television says Iraq's military command for Baghdad is extending a round-the-clock curfew in the capital until further notice.

The curfew was to have expired at sunrise on Sunday. It was imposed Thursday night to curb violence in the capital.

Violence has been on the rise as part of a nationwide backlash by followers of Muqtada Al Sadr to the Iraqi government's attempt to crush Shiite militias and criminal gangs in Basra.