U.S. and Iraqi security forces unearthed two mass graves containing a total of 44 unidentified bodies in two areas across Iraq on Sunday, police sources said.

U.S. and Iraqi forces discovered a mass grave containing remains of 25 badly decomposed bodies in the albu-Tu'ma village near the town of al-Khalis, 60 km north of Baghdad, a police source from Diyala province, where Khalis located, told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Separately, a police source from the city of Diwaniya, 180 km south of Baghdad, said that police patrols found another mass grave containing the remains of 19 beheaded bodies in the al-Shannafiya area, 80 km west of the city.

The bodies were also badly decomposed, showing that the victims were killed for a long time, the police said.

U.S. and Iraqi security forces regularly discover mass graves in different parts of Iraq for people killed in chaos and sectarian violence since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

(Xinhua News Agency April 21, 2008)