Two girls under the age of four died today when a car bomb exploded in a bustling market in Baquba northeast of Baghdad, killing six people and wounding 20.

The blast destroyed food stalls and shops in the market, which was busy with women and children. Police said that most of the casualties were children.

The bomb went off after police arrived in the market to check on a separate incident in which one person had been killed. Five policemen were wounded, police said.

The religiously mixed city of Baquba, 65 km (40 miles) northeast of Baghdad, has been the scene of several sectarian attacks since a bomb destroyed a Shia shrine on February 22 in Samarra, sparking violence that has killed more than 500 people across Iraq, according to official estimates.

As news of the latest bombing filtered out, Iraq’s president announced that he would call the country’s new parliament into session for the first time on March 12, starting the clock on a 60-day period during which the legislature must elect a new head of state and sign off on a prime minister and Cabinet.

"We will call today for holding the meeting on the 12th of this month because it is the last day that the constitution allows us to hold the meeting of the new parliament," Jalal Talabani told reporters.

The constitution requires parliament to hold its first meeting no later than four weeks after the vote was certified, which occurred February 12, nearly two months after the election was held.

Iraq is in the midst of a political crisis, with its many parties deeply divided over the main Shia bloc’s decision to name Ibrahim al-Jaafari to a new term as Prime Minister. A coalition of Sunni, Kurdish and some secular politicians launched a campaign last week to block Mr al-Jaafari from continuing as head of government.

Under the constitution, the Shias’ United Iraqi Alliance, which won the largest number of seats in parliament, has the first crack at forming a government and has chosen Mr al-Jaafari as its nominee for Prime Minister. But the Alliance has too few seats to act alone. Those hoping the Alliance will dump Mr al-Jaafari are believed to support Adil Abdul-Mahdi, who is currently Vice President.

Mr Abdul-Mahdi lost in the Shia selection caucus by one vote to Mr al-Jaafari, who won with the support of Hojetoleslam Moqtada al-Sadr, a radical cleric. Mr Abdul-Mahdi is backed by Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, a powerful Shia leader who is frequently at odds politically with Hojetoleslam al-Sadr. Both have strong militias behind them.

The Sunni Arab minority, meanwhile, blames Mr al-Jaafari for the Shia militiamen who attacked Sunni mosques and clerics after the bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra last month.

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