Bombings targeting Shiite pilgrims in Damascus killed around 40 Iraqis on Saturday, the Iraqi foreign ministry said.

"Preliminary statistics indicate the fall of around 40 Iraqi martyrs and 120 wounded," ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said in a statement, terming it "criminal terrorist operation."

Jamal said that roadside bombs targeted buses carrying the pilgrims, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that there was one roadside and one suicide bombing in the Bab al-Saghir area of Damascus.