BAGHDAD —
Children discovered the handcuffed and blindfolded corpses of 10 unidentified young men in eastern Baghdad on Thursday, apparently killed by gunshots to the head, Iraqi police said.
Police said residents told them unusual vehicle movements to and from an abandoned building in the area had caught the attention of the children, who waited until the cars had left to investigate.
“Several kids climbed over the wall of the building to enter and they found the 10 bodies inside one of its rooms,” said a police officer involved in the investigation.
It was not clear who was behind the killings.
The civil war in neighboring Syria, which has brought sectarian tensions to the boil across the Middle East, has boosted Sunni insurgents in Iraq who are also exploiting general discontent in the minority Sunni population.
Iraq has recently witnessed several incidents suggesting that Shi'ite militias, which have so far stayed out of the violence, may once again be getting involved.
Around 800 Iraqis were killed in acts of violence in August, with Baghdad the worst affected governorate, according to the United Nations.
Police said residents told them unusual vehicle movements to and from an abandoned building in the area had caught the attention of the children, who waited until the cars had left to investigate.
“Several kids climbed over the wall of the building to enter and they found the 10 bodies inside one of its rooms,” said a police officer involved in the investigation.
It was not clear who was behind the killings.
The civil war in neighboring Syria, which has brought sectarian tensions to the boil across the Middle East, has boosted Sunni insurgents in Iraq who are also exploiting general discontent in the minority Sunni population.
Iraq has recently witnessed several incidents suggesting that Shi'ite militias, which have so far stayed out of the violence, may once again be getting involved.
Around 800 Iraqis were killed in acts of violence in August, with Baghdad the worst affected governorate, according to the United Nations.
