Iraqi officials began on Monday to assess the extent of the damage from two bombings in Baghdad the day before that are expected to paralyse government agencies for a considerable period, as the death toll climbed to nearly 160.

The bombers attacked the justice ministry, the Baghdad provincial council and the ministry of municipalities and public works, bodies that many Iraqis regarded as inefficient and inept. More than 500 people were wounded in the bombings, which appeared designed to portray the Shiite-led government as feeble and rudderless ahead of elections scheduled for January.