Local authorities clamped a total curfew on the Shiite holy city of Najaf in central Iraq on Friday to thwart attacks a day after 73 people died from twin suicide bombings in nearby Hilla.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has launched anniversary celebrations for Iran’s Islamic Revolution with a defiant promise to push ahead with the country’s controversial nuclear programme.

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi government Thursday invited Iran and Syria to Baghdad for talks next month on regional security, amid growing tension and accusations by the Bush administration of foreign meddling in Iraqi affairs.