Iraq Hangs 5 Men Convicted of Terrorism, Sources Say

Iraq on Tuesday hanged five people convicted of terrorism charges. (Reuters)
Iraq on Tuesday hanged five people convicted of terrorism charges. (Reuters)
TT

Iraq Hangs 5 Men Convicted of Terrorism, Sources Say

Iraq on Tuesday hanged five people convicted of terrorism charges. (Reuters)
Iraq on Tuesday hanged five people convicted of terrorism charges. (Reuters)

Iraq on Tuesday hanged five people convicted of terrorism charges, local security officials said according to Reuters.

All those executed at a prison in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah were Iraqi nationals, said one source who attended.

A second security source who is part of a team in charge of handing over bodies to their relatives confirmed the details.

The sources gave no details of the crimes that the men had been convicted of.

Another Iraqi man, convicted of murder, was also hanged on Tuesday, the sources said.

Iraq has put hundreds of suspected extremists on trial and carried out several mass executions since defeating ISIS fighters in a US-backed military campaign in 2014-2017.

On Nov. 16, Iraq hanged 21 convicted terrorists and murderers, including people involved in two suicide attacks that killed dozens of people in a northern town.

Human rights groups have accused authorities in Baghdad and other Iraqi regions of inconsistencies in the judicial process and flawed trials leading to unfair convictions. Iraq says its trials are fair.



Four Killed in Israeli Strike on Central Beirut Near Key Govt Buildings, Embassies

 Rescue workers search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP)
Rescue workers search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP)
TT

Four Killed in Israeli Strike on Central Beirut Near Key Govt Buildings, Embassies

 Rescue workers search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP)
Rescue workers search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP)

At least four people were killed and 18 others were injured in an Israeli strike on central Beirut, the Lebanese caretaker health ministry said on Monday.

The strike late on Monday hit a densely populated residential area in Lebanon's capital close to the UN headquarters, Parliament, the prime minister’s office and several embassies.  

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said two missiles hit the area of Zoqaq al-Blat neighborhood of Beirut. The strike comes following reports that the US envoy has delayed his visit for ceasefire talks.  

Ambulance sirens echoed through the area and a reporter with The Associated Press at the scene described significant casualties on the street.  

The target of the airstrike remains unclear, and the Israeli army did not issue a prior warning.  

Many areas in central Beirut, including Zoqaq al-Blat, became a refuge for many displaced by the ongoing conflict in southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut. The strike also occurred near a Hussainiya, a Shiite mosque.

It was the second consecutive day of Israeli strikes on central Beirut after more than a month-long pause.  

On Sunday, a strike in the area of Ras al-Nabaa killed Hezbollah media spokesperson Mohammed Afif, along with six other people, including a woman.  

Later that day, four people were killed in a separate strike in the commercial district of Mar Elias. Reports said it targeted leader of Hezbollah’s southern operations Mahmoud Madi.  

Israeli media did not have immediate comment.