The attackers used army unifor |
Iraqi gunmen have killed 25 people believed to be linked to Sunni militias opposing al-Qaeda, police say.
Five women were among those killed, as the gunmen in army uniforms pulled the victims out of their houses in a village south of Baghdad on Saturday. The victims were reported to have been tied up before being shot in the head.
Sunni militias turned against al-Qaeda and its militant allies two years ago in what was a key turning point in the campaign to quell the Iraqi insurgency.
According to some accounts there were seven survivors who were left handcuffed at the scene of Saturday's attack, and there were reports of arrests being made in the area.
Men wearing uniforms and driving vehicles similar to those used by the army stormed three houses in the village Interior ministry official |
Such places have seen a number of similar revenge attacks in recent months believed to have been carried out by al-Qaeda or related groups, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from Baghdad.
"Men wearing uniforms and driving vehicles similar to those used by the army stormed three houses in the village," an interior ministry official was quoted as saying by AFP news agency.
General levels of violence in Iraq are markedly lower than they were three years ago. But there has been a slight but consistent increase over the past few months, our correspondent says.
The Sunni militias that lent their support to the government are known as Awakening movement, or the Sons of Iraq.
US authorities set up the militias, paying, arming and training their members before Iraqi authorities took control of them in late 2008.
BBC NEWS
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