Men in Iraqi army uniforms kill 24 in Sunni area

BAGHDAD — Gunmen in Iraqi military uniforms raided a village outside Baghdad and killed at least 24 people in an execution-style attack, apparently targeting a Sunni group that revolted against al-Qaida and helped turn the tide of the Iraq war, authorities said today.

The attack late Friday comes amid increasing concerns that insurgents will take advantage of Iraq’s political turmoil to further destabilize the country, nearly a month after parliamentary elections failed to give any candidate a decisive win. Many fear a drawn-out political debate could spill over into violence and complicate American efforts to speed up troop withdrawals in the coming months.

Some of the victims in Friday’s attack suffered broken arms and legs, indicating they had been tortured before they were shot, police said. One witness said many of the victims were so badly brutalized that they were “beyond recognition.” Five of the dead were women.

At least seven people were found alive, bound with handcuffs, authorities said.

Baghdad’s security spokesman, Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, said the killings about 15 miles south of Baghdad bear “an obvious al-Qaida hallmark.” Police cordoned off the area and forced residents to stay inside their homes as helicopters swarmed overhead and authorities searched for suspects.

By late afternoon, 25 people had been arrested, al-Moussawi said.

“The area has many orchards and streams, so it is difficult to secure,” he told The Associated Press.

Many of the dead were members of a local Sahwa, or Awakening Council — one of several names for the Sunni fighters who changed the course of the war when they revolted against al-Qaida in Iraq and joined the Americans in late 2006 and 2007, officials said. The fighters also are known as Sons of Iraq.

The killings are reminiscent of those that plagued Baghdad at the height of the sectarian bloodshed of 2006 and 2007, when men, sometimes dressed in police or army uniforms, snatched people from their houses at night before killing them and dumping the bodies.

Similar violence still plagues the country, although not as frequently.

In November, gunmen in Iraqi army uniforms abducted and killed 13 people in the village of al-Saadan near the town of Abu Ghraib on Baghdad’s western outskirts.

Members of the Iraqi military have been accused in the past of taking part in such extra-judicial killings, but their uniforms are also widely available on the open market and have been used by insurgents in the past to conceal their identities.

A senior Iraqi army official who arrived at the scene of the crime Friday evening said the bodies were handcuffed and had been sprayed up and down with machine gun fire.

The official also said witnesses told him the gunmen tricked the residents into trusting them by saying they were coming to ask them how they were faring in their village. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release details publicly.

The attack happened in a rural village in Arab Jabour, a collection of industrial zones, villages and palm and citrus groves in the Sunni belt around Baghdad’s southern doorstep, said Mustafa Kamel, a Sahwa leader south of Baghdad.

Arab Jabour is a gateway to the capital that was used by insurgents before they were crippled by the U.S. troop surge in early 2007 and the Sunni militia uprising.

In an airstrike in January 2008, American warplanes dropped 40,000 pounds of bombs in just 10 minutes on an area of Arab Jabour to clear one of the last insurgent strongholds in the area.

The Awakening groups soon took over across Arab Jabour and many Sunni areas around Baghdad, becoming de facto security bosses and grass-roots spymasters with a steady American paycheck.

But the question of what to do with these nearly 100,000 people in the long-term remains. The U.S. handed over control last year of the Awakening Councils to Iraq, which pays their roughly $300 monthly salaries.

Many of the Sons of Iraq were former insurgents who later teamed up with the Americans against al-Qaida in Iraq. The move, known as the Awakening, was credited — along with the surge of tens of thousands of U.S. troops — in helping quell the violence.

Friday’s bloodshed coincides with dealmaking maneuvers by Iraq’s major political groups. Former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi’s cross-sectarian bloc tapped into heavy Sunni support to come in just two seats ahead of the mainly Shiite list of the incumbent, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in the March 7 vote.

But neither side has enough seats to govern alone. On Friday and today, an influential anti-American cleric — and potential kingmaker — held an unofficial poll of his supporters, asking them to decide which candidate he should throw his support behind.

The poll has no legal standing and there is no way to verify the winner, who will get the backing of some 39 Sadrists who won parliamentary seats in the March 7 election.

The winner was expected to be announced late today or Sunday.

Elsewhere in Iraq, a customer at a liquor shop in northern Baghdad was killed today after militants planted a bomb outside the shop’s gate, police said. And on Friday, police in the northern city of Mosul said 23 detainees awaiting trial on charges of “terrorist crimes” escaped from jail.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Customers enter and exit the Costco on Dec. 2, 2022, in Lake Stevens. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Costco stores could be impacted by looming truck driver strike threat

Truck drivers who deliver groceries and produce to Costco warehouses… Continue reading

Two Washington State ferries pass along the route between Mukilteo and Clinton as scuba divers swim near the shore Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023, in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ferry system increases ridership by a half million in 2024

Edmonds-Kingston route remains second-busiest route in the system.

Firefighters respond to a 911 call on July 16, 2024, in Mill Creek. Firefighters from South County Fire, Tulalip Bay Fire Department and Camano Island Fire and Rescue left Wednesday to help fight the LA fires. (Photo provided by South County Fire)
Help is on the way: Snohomish County firefighters en route to LA fires

The Los Angeles wildfires have caused at least 180,000 evacuations. The crews expect to arrive Friday.

x
Edmonds police shooting investigation includes possibility of gang violence

The 18-year-old victim remains in critical condition as of Friday morning.

The Everett Wastewater Treatment Plant along the Snohomish River. Thursday, June 16, 2022 in Everett. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett council approves water, sewer rate increases

The 43% rise in combined water and sewer rates will pay for large infrastructure projects.

Robin Cain with 50 of her marathon medals hanging on a display board she made with her father on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Running a marathon is hard. She ran one in every state.

Robin Cain, of Lake Stevens, is one of only a few thousand people to ever achieve the feat.

People line up to grab food at the Everett Recovery Cafe on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Coffee, meals and compassion are free at the Everett Recovery Cafe

The free, membership-based day center offers free coffee and meals and more importantly, camaraderie and recovery support.

Devani Padron, left, Daisy Ramos perform during dance class at Mari's Place Monday afternoon in Everett on July 13, 2016. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)
Mari’s Place helps children build confidence and design a better future

The Everett-based nonprofit offers free and low-cost classes in art, music, theater and dance for children ages 5 to 14.

The Everett Wastewater Treatment Plant along the Snohomish River on Thursday, June 16, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett water, sewer rates could jump 43% by 2028

The rate hikes would pay for improvements to the city’s sewer infrastructure.

The bond funded new track and field at Northshore Middle School on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024 in Bothell, Washington. (Courtesy of Northshore School District)
Northshore School District bond improvements underway

The $425 million bond is funding new track and field complexes, playgrounds and phase one of two school replacements.

Riley Boyd, 6, left, and sisters Vivienne Boyd, 3, ride a sled together down a hill at Anderson Center Field on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County shouldn’t expect snow and cold to leave any time soon

Residents can expect a reprieve from the snow until possibly this weekend. Colder than normal temperatures are expected to remain into next week.

Modern DNA tech comes through again for Everett police in 1989 murder case

Recent advances in forensic genealogy led to the suspect’s arrest in Clark County, Nevada.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.