Al-Qaida inmate killed in Iraq jail

Fighting between prisoners and security officers in Baghdad kills at least 18, including al-Qaida mastermind of church attack At least 18 people were killed in fighting between security officers and prisoners at an Iraqi interior ministry jail complex in Baghdad on Sunday, a security official said. The dead included an al-Qaida leader known as the “emir of Baghdad” who planned an attack on a Catholic church last October in which more than 50 people died, said Major-General Qassim al-Moussawi, Baghdad’s security spokesman. The skirmish at a counter-terrorism unit in Baghdad’s central Karrada district began when a prisoner grabbed a gun from a guard, killed several guards and interior ministry officers, and gave a weapon to other inmates, Moussawi said. “Security forces and guards responded and killed 11 prisoners … including Huthaifa al-Batawi, who was in charge of planning the church attack,” he said. Seven security officers were killed in the skirmish and another was wounded. Moussawi said the situation at the jail was under control and no prisoners had escaped. Batawi was arrested in late November along with 11 others in connection with the attack on Our Lady of Salvation church in the Iraqi capital during Sunday mass on 31 October. Dozens of hostages and police died in the bloodiest attack against Iraq’s Christian minority since the 2003 US-led invasion. Iraqi security forces have been on high alert for revenge attacks by al-Qaida since US commandos killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan last week. Iraq al-Qaida guardian.co.uk

Posted by on May 8, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.