15 workers killed by gunmen

At least 15 people were killed and as many as 15 injured when gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying dozens of cleaners and other workers to the city's airport.

The bus was carrying the workers from a Shiite neighbourhood of Baghdad down what has been deemed one of the most dangerous routes in Baghdad since the beginning of the war.

The highway to Baghdad International airport passes through some of the most dangerous Sunni areas of Baghdad.

A crackdown by the US and Iraqi forces on the highway over the past year provided some relief but recent days have seen an upsurge in insurgent attacks.