Iraq has carried out the execution of three individuals who were convicted of playing a role in a devastating vehicle bombing that rocked Baghdad in 2016, resulting in the deaths of over 300 people and injuring countless others.
This bombing marked the deadliest single attack in Iraq since the US-led invasion in 2003.
The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for the attack, underscoring the organization’s brutal and indiscriminate tactics.
The individuals hanged for their involvement were not specifically named in the statement released by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s office. The executions took place on Sunday and Monday, following undisclosed sentencing dates.
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A government insider revealed to AFP news agency that Ghazwan al-Zawbaee, believed to be the mastermind behind the bombing and a high-ranking member of IS, was among those put to death. Zawbaee had been captured and repatriated to Iraq in 2021.
Prime Minister al-Sudani conveyed to the families of the victims that “the rightful punishment of death sentence” had been executed against “three key criminals found guilty of their involvement in the terrorist bombing.”
The attack took place on July 3, 2016, when a vehicle laden with explosives was detonated near a crowded shopping center in Karrada, a predominantly Shia Muslim district of Baghdad. The incident occurred during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan when people were gathered to break their fasts.
The subsequent fire resulting from the explosion led to the majority of the casualties. Many of the victims had been enjoying an evening out when the tragedy struck.
In the aftermath of the attack, Interior Minister Mohammed Ghabban resigned from his post. The then-Prime Minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, directly implicated Zawbaee as the “primary culprit” behind this horrific incident and others attributed to IS.
IS, a Sunni Muslim extremist group, once commanded a vast territory spanning 88,000 square kilometers (34,000 square miles) across eastern Iraq and western Syria. The organization subjected nearly eight million people to its brutal rule.
Despite the territorial losses suffered by IS in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria two years later, the group’s influence persists, with thousands of militants estimated to remain active in both nations.
As of March, the United Nations assessed that IS maintains “5,000 to 7,000 members and supporters” in Iraq and Syria, roughly half of whom are combatants.
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