BAGHDAD, Iraq - A pair of suicide bombers detonated explosives Thursday among shoppers in a crowded outdoor market in a Shiite city south of Baghdad, killing at least 73 people and wounding 163, police said. Bombs and a mortar attack killed at least 17 others in both Shiite and Sunni areas of Baghdad.

Soldiers from Delta Company, 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment search for buried weapons and bomb materials near Youssifiyah, 12 miles (20 kilometers) south of Baghdad, Iraq Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007. [AP]

Overall, about 130 people were killed or found dead across the country, reflecting the ongoing wave of sectarian and insurgency bloodletting as the US military gears up for a major security operation to stem the violence.

The US military also said Friday it was investigating reports of a US helicopter going down north of Baghdad.

The statement came after police and witnesses reported that at least one helicopter had been shot down Friday in the area surrounding Taji, an air base 12 miles north of the capital. Some witnesses described two helicopters going down.

"I can confirm that we are looking into reports that a helicopter went down north of Baghdad," US military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Josslyn Aberle said.

Police and witnesses said the area had been sealed off by American forces and US planes were flying overhead.

The biggest attack Thursday took place in the center of Hillah, a city about 60 miles south of Baghdad. Police and witnesses said the two bombers strolled into the Maktabat market about 6 p.m. when the area was packed with shoppers buying food for the evening meal.

One of the bombers detonated his explosives when he was approached by police and the other blew himself up moments later, according to police spokesman Capt. Muthanna Khaled, who gave the casualty figures. He said Friday that the toll had risen after several of the wounded died and more bodies were found in recovery efforts.

The blasts sent bodies hurling through the air and set fire to wooden stalls where vendors sold fruits and vegetables, witnesses said. Shoppers fled screaming in panic, while others stopped to help rescuers carry away the wounded.

Dr. Mohammed Diya of the Hillah General Hospital said some of the wounded were in critical condition, raising concern the death toll could rise.

Qassim Abed Sadah, 33, a bookseller, said the first explosion blew him out of his chair. He raced to the door of his shop just as the second blast occurred. "People were flying in the air," he said.

Mahdi Latif, 35, a fruit vendor, said he saw a policeman motion for the first bomber to stop for a search.

"Seconds later I saw a ball of fire and all I remember is me and many other people trying to flee the area," he said.

Pools of blood were scattered along the market streets, along with bits of fruits and vegetables. Paramedics wearing white gloves roamed through the area removing body parts.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack, the latest in a long series that have occurred in Hillah since the insurgency erupted in late 2003. The Shiite city, located in a religiously mixed province, was the scene of one of Iraq's deadliest attacks - a February 2005 suicide car bombing that killed 125 people.

n Baghdad, sectarian violence flared in both Shiite and Sunni areas of the capital, where US and Iraqi forces are preparing for the third major security crackdown in a year.

Six people died and 12 were wounded when a car bomb exploded on Rashid Street in the mostly Shiite heart of the city. A bomb on a public bus killed another six people and wounded eight in the upscale Shiite commercial district of Karradah.

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