Following Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad al-Bolani’s call for the swift execution of terror suspects, the United Nations has asked Iraq to abolish its death penalty. At least eight Iraqis died in new attacks and another 11 were wounded.
In Baghdad, a blast targeting a bus near a popular coffee shop killed two people and wounded seven others. A policeman was killed and two others were wounded in a blast in Alam. Hundreds of Christians attended a well-guarded memorial service at Our Lady of Salvation Syriac Catholic church 40 days after a standoff left 46 dead worshippers dead. Meanwhile, hundreds of Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr‘s followers demanded the immediate closure of bars and nightclubs. Also, a Turkish consortium has won the bid to rebuild Sadr City.
Uniformed gunmen killed a poultry farmer and two workers in Meshahda.
A firefight in al-Bu Ubeid left two policemen dead, but four suspects were captured later in Aouja. Two other policemen were wounded.
Two suspects were arrested in Tal Afar, which has tightened security.
A suspected al-Qaeda leader was captured in Suwayra.
