Iraqi Prime Minster Nouri al-Maliki Saturday joined other Iraqi leaders
in mourning a top Sunni lawmaker who was gunned down outside a Baghdad
mosque.
Mr. Maliki, along with Iraqi Vice President Adil
Abdul-Mahdi and lawmakers attended the funeral of Harith al-Obeidi, the
leader of the main Sunni bloc in Iraq's parliament, the National Accordance
Front.
Obeidi and four others were gunned down after Friday prayers at the
al-Shawaf mosque in the Yarmouk area of the capital. Police say mosque
guards chased the assailant, who detonated a grenade and was killed as
he fled.
Prime Minister Maliki has ordered an investigation
into the attack, which he called "a futile attempt to incite sectarian
strife."
Elsewhere in the capital, the U.S. military said one of its soldiers was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad Friday.
U.S.
Ambassador to Iraq Christopher Hill and U.S. General Ray Odierno
condemned Friday's attack on Obeidi and said the "senseless act of
violence against an elected official shows " an "utter disregard" for
the will of Iraqis who seek peace and prosperity.
In a joint
statement, the U.S. officials said the fact that the attack took place
at a mosque "makes it even more reprehensible."
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and AP.
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