Violence is back with a vengeance in Iraq - explosions in Baghdad have become common again and secret torture chambers are fuelling the cycle of hatred.

Even the al-Mahdi army has been flexing its muscles, in a direct challenge to the Iraqi government.

And although the Iraqi army has eliminated the twp leading figures in al-Qaeda in Iraq, experts believe that al-Qaeda's horrific attacks will continue for a long time to come.

Some Iraqi politicians are blaming the current political stalemate over the formation of a new government for the resurgent violence.

To discuss this, Inside Iraq is joined by Abdul-Hadi al-Hassani, a member of the Iraqi parliament, and Sami Ramadani, a professor at London Metropolitan University.

This episode of Inside Iraq aired from Friday, April 30, 2010.