A wave of deadly bombings struck the capital, Baghdad, Thursday, while the governor of Anbar province reportedly escaped an assassination attempt when bombs exploded near his convoy, injuring four of his bodyguards. This follows a number of bombings in Baghdad on Monday that killed more than 50 people.

Martin Kobler, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), condemned the attack against the governor’s convoy.

In a news release issued in Baghdad, he also voiced his dismay at the horrific toll of lives lost following the “new criminal wave of attacks against innocent civilians,” particularly targeting the capital.

“Systemic violence is ready to explode at any moment if all Iraqi leaders do not engage immediately to pull the country out of this mayhem,” Mr. Kobler stated, reiterating the call he made on the country’s leaders earlier this week.

On Wednesday, in an exchange of views with European parliamentarians, Mr. Kobler voiced serious concerns over the heightened level of violence in Iraq and the dangers of the country falling back into sectarian strife, if decisive action is not taken by its political leaders.

“The country stands at a crossroads,” he stated, calling for a stronger European Union role in dealing with the developments unfolding in the country, and for increased interaction with the Iraqi Council of Representatives.

According to figures released by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), a total of 712 people were killed and 1,633 were wounded in acts of terrorism and violence.

The majority of victims were civilians, with 595 people killed and 1,438 injured. A further 117 members of the Iraqi Security Forces were killed and 195 were injured.

Baghdad was the worst affected governorate, with a total of 697 civilian casualties, followed by Diyala, Salahuddin, Kirkuk, Ninewa and Anbar.

Hundreds of people have been killed or wounded in recent clashes across the country, including in Hawija, north of Baghdad, where government helicopters shot at militants hiding in the village, resulting in dozens of people killed or injured.

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Iraq, Martin Kobler, has repeatedly called on Iraqi authorities to take decisive measures to stop the escalating violence, and on Tuesday, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged all Iraqis to come together and engage in inclusive dialogue to overcome the “deep political crisis” facing the country.

“It is only through dialogue and full participation in the government institutions that bold initiatives can be taken to overcome the critical phase the country is going through,” Mr. Kobler said.

Earlier on Thursday, Mr. Kobler welcomed the return of Kurdistan region ministers to the Cabinet and Kurdistan region members of parliament to the Council of Representatives, following a meeting on Monday between Prime Minister, Nuri al-Maliki, and the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Nichervan Barzani.