The attack on the soldiers, who were members of the 7th army division, took place about 100 kilometres (60 miles) northeast of Haditha, in Anbar province, the officer said. - File Photo

RAMADI, Iraq: Gunmen killed eight soldiers at a checkpoint in western Iraq before burning their corpses on Tuesday, a police officer said.

“Unknown gunmen attacked a checkpoint located between Haditha and Baiji, killing eight” soldiers, a police major said on condition of anonymity.

They then “collected their weapons and put the corpses in a vehicle and set it on fire” following the attack early on Tuesday, he added.

The attack on the soldiers, who were members of the 7th army division, took place about 100 kilometres (60 miles) northeast of Haditha, in Anbar province, the officer said.

The checkpoint was on a strategic road linking the two Sunni provinces of Anbar and Salaheddin, and which the insurgents used to transport weapons between the two provinces.

After the creation in Anbar of the Sahwa militia, comprised of Sunni tribesmen who joined forces with the US military against al Qaeda from late 2006, many insurgents went to Salaheddin.

Qaeda-affiliated militants have claimed responsibility for previous attacks in which security force members have been killed and their corpses burned, though there has not yet been a claim for Tuesday's attack.

The violence comes after al Qaeda's front group in Iraq threatened a campaign of 100 attacks, starting in mid-August, to avenge the death of Osama bin Laden in a US Special Forces raid in Pakistan in May.

Violence is down across Iraq from its peak in 2006 and 2007, but attacks remain common. A total of 239 people were killed in violence in the country in August, according to official figures.

Opinion

Editorial

IHK resolution
Updated 08 Nov, 2024

IHK resolution

If the BJP administration were to listen to Kashmiris, it could pave the way for the resumption of the political process in IHK.
Climate realities
08 Nov, 2024

Climate realities

THE Air Quality Index in Lahore once again shot past the 1,000-level mark on Wednesday morning, registering at an...
Rule by fear
08 Nov, 2024

Rule by fear

THE abduction of an opposition MNA, as claimed by PTI, is yet another grim episode in Pakistan’s ongoing crisis of...
Trump 2.0
Updated 07 Nov, 2024

Trump 2.0

It remains to be seen how his promises to bring ‘peace’ to Middle East reconcile with his blatantly pro-Israel bias.
Fait accompli
07 Nov, 2024

Fait accompli

A SLEW of secretively conceived and hastily enacted legislation has achieved its intended result: the powers of the...
IPP contracts
07 Nov, 2024

IPP contracts

THE government expects the ongoing ‘negotiations’ with power producers aimed at revising the terms of sovereign...