Gunmen murdered on Friday an entire family in Iraq’s Salaheddine province before fleeing the scene, in what has become an all-too-common occurrence in the country.
ISIS later claimed responsibility for the crime that took place in the Al-bu Dor area south of Tikrit.
The terror group said its gunmen killed all six family members, as well as a policeman, alleging that they were “spies” for the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).
The gunmen stormed the houses of the victims and gunned them down.
This is the first time that the group claims responsibility for such an attack. It did not claim other previous similar murders.
Authorities have launched an investigation into the crime.
The relatives of the deceased have refused to bury them until Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi or Interior Minister Othman al-Ghanmi arrive at the scene to listen to their demands.
Ghanmi arrived in the area on Saturday to hear the local grievances.
Months ago, a similar crime was reported in the al-Farhatiya region in Salaheddine where eight members of a single family were murdered. Investigators have yet to announce their findings.
No one claimed responsibility for the murders.
Detailing Friday’s crime, Marwan al-Jabara, a spokesman for the Salaheddine provincial council, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the perpetrators were dressed in military outfits and had used guns equipped with silencers to commit the murders.
All victims were members of the same family. An eighth person was left seriously wounded.
The security in the area is firmly controlled by a PMF brigade, Jabara said. None of the residents are allowed in or out of the area without permits, he revealed, wondering how the perpetrators managed to escape.
He warned that this will likely not be the last murder, urging the government to act to crack down on crime and protect the people.
