Kurdish forces mistook a group of Canadian soldiers for militants and fire upon them, killing one and wounding three. At least 203 people were also killed, and another 76 were wounded across the country. A second ancient Iraqi city may have been razed by the Islamic State militants.
A Canadian soldier was killed and three more were wounded in a case of mistaken identity in northern Iraq. Kurdish forces fired upon the group when they arrived at an observation post on the front line.
The Iraqi government is investigating reports that the militants are now looting artifacts from and destroying what is left of Hatra, a UNESCO world heritage site that is about 2,000 years old.
The Independent High Commission for Human Rights in Iraq called on the government to plan accordingly for a large exodus of civilians that will accompany an operation to liberate Mosul. A commissioner said that the can be no repeat of the circumstances that had occurred in Anbar province.
Officials in Najaf said that 64 bodies belonging to Iraqi security personnel had been received, since March 4, for burial in the world’s largest cemetery. This figures includes people who were killed in Tikrit and other in battles across Iraq. However, it does not include all of them. An unknown number of the deceased were released directly to their families for burial at home and may remain uncounted.
The Wadi al-Salaam cemetery is over 1,400 years old and is estimated to contain five million graves. Although the Iraqi government tends to underreport their casualties, it is through other official sources, such as those in Najaf, that clearer records can be made.
Hospital officials reported that dozens of security personnel were wounded in the Tikrit area.
Eight people were killed and 32 were wounded when a car bomb blast was followed by a suicide bombing in Tuz Khormato.
In Baghdad, four people were killed and nine more were wounded during a mortar attack on the Arab Jabour neighborhood. A blast killed two people and wounded seven more at a market in northern Baghdad. A bomb killed three people and wounded 11 more when it targeting a bus in Baghdad al-Jadida. Six were wounded in a blast in Bayaa.
The bodies of eight men were hung at the entrance to Hawija. Some were clothed in military fatigues, but it is unclear if the men were pro-government troops or just being presented as such.
Three policemen were killed and three more were wounded in a suicide blast near the Jordanian border.
Three bodies were found in Muqdadiya.
A bomb killed two people at a sports venue in Khan Bani Saad.
In Garma, and airstrike left one doctor dead and five staffmembers wounded at a hospital. Airstrikes left 150 militants dead.
A roadside bomb killed a security member and wounded two more in Iskandariya.
A bomb in Baquba killed one security member and wounded another.
Gunmen killed a civilian in Mualimeen.
A body belonging to a kidnapped truck driver was found in Samawa.
In Sadr City, gunmen kidnapped 31 men who are suspected of criminal activity such as prostitution. Shi’ite militiamen are the more likely culprits in the mass abduction as they have already been involved in imposing strict Islamic laws on residents. Another 17 may also have abducted.
In Gayera, 33 militants were killed, including their Tunisian commander.
Thirteen militants were killed in Alam.
In Ramadi, four suicide bombers were killed.
An airstrike in Hit killed a militant leader and two aides.
