Iraqi authorities say gunmen have killed the chief of police in a town northeast of Baghdad.
Police say Colonel Hatem Rashid Mohammad was killed Friday, along with an aide during an ambush in Balad Ruz, 50 kilometers northeast of the capital.
Insurgents have been increasingly attacking Iraqi policemen and soldiers, who have taken a larger role in trying to stabilize the country in recent months.
Thursday, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Detainee Affairs Matthew Waxman said U.S. forces in Iraq are holding a senior aide to terrorist mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Mr. Waxman said the man was arrested in Iraq in late 2004 and that he holds joint U.S. and Jordanian citizenship. He said the suspect acted as an emissary between terror groups in Iraq and al-Zarqawi.
Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.
