At least 78 people have been killed and around 200 injured in a truck explosion near a Shi'ite mosque in central Baghdad. Iraqi police say the bomb was planted in a lorry parked near the Khillani mosque in the capital's business district.

Rescue workers say the death toll could rise as bodies are still being pulled from the debris.

Gunfire erupted immediately after the blast, which damaged the outer walls of the mosque.

The explosion came just 48 hours after a curfew was lifted following last week's bombing of another Shiite Mosque in Samarra.

And the latest developement, several mortar bombs have landed in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone – home of the U.S. embassy and Iraqi government buildings. It's unclear if anyone was hurt in the attack.