policeman threw
himself on a suicide bomber on
Wednesday, just as the man
made moves to detonate his
device. The 34 year old policeman was
attempting to shield dozens of Shiite
pilgrims from the deadly blast, which
took five lives.
Follow RT’s timeline of Iraq violence in
2013
Hundreds of thousands of Shiite
pilgrims are journeying to Karbala,
south west of Baghdad, to
commemorate Imam Hussein, the
Prophet Mohammed’s grandson. The
40-day observance has become a
common target for acts of terror.
One particular group of pilgrims was
making its way from Khales, north east
of the capital, when the suicide bomber
targeted them.
Anticipating a devastating tragedy, 34-
year-old policeman, Ayyub Khalaf,
threw himself on to the assailant,
catching him in a tight embrace, and
shielding the pilgrims from the full
impact of the blast.
Khalaf was one of the five who died as
the explosion ripped through the
bystanders.
“Ayyub was martyred while defending
pilgrims, and his name will be an
eternal symbol because he saved the
lives of dozens of innocents,” Khalaf’s
friend, Saad Naim told AFP, adding that
Khalaf himself was married with two
children.
“We will take revenge on the Al-Qaeda
terrorist organization,” he stated,
though Al-Qaeda, or any other group,
has not claimed responsibility for the
Wednesday attack.
Over 30 pilgrims dead as
violence spills over into
Thursday
Casualties from Wednesday’s assault
were fewer given the self-sacrifice. On
Thursday, however, at least 36 pilgrims
were killed in three separate suicide
bomb attacks.
One suicide bomber targeted a funeral
tent, killing 16 and wounding a further
31 in southern Baghdad's mainly Sunni
neighborhood of Doura. Nine others
were killed near Latifiya, due south of
Doura, after a similar attack on a
cluster of Shiite pilgrims traveling from
the north. Eleven were killed inside
Latifiya itself, according to Reuters.
Over 8,000 people have died in Iraq
this year, in project Iraq Body Count’s
estimates – making it the bloodiest
year for the country since 2008. In
November alone, 948 people were
killed as a result of violence in the
country.
The government places most blame
with groups linked to the Iraqi wing of
Al-Qaeda. The civil war in neighboring
Syria may have also contributed to the
violence, as Sunni rebels are acting
against a government allied to Shiite
Iran.


Published time: December 19, 2013 19:15
Edited time: December 20, 2013 10:50
Mourners cry as they hold onto the
coffin of their relative, who was killed
in an attack in the town of Yusfiya,
during a funeral in Najaf, 160 km (100
miles) south of Baghdad, December 17,
2013 .
iraq times. www.RT/news.com

can a Nigerian policeman do this?

A hero indeed