Iraq executes 13 for involvement in ‘terrorist acts’

By Muayyad al-Tarfi and Ali Mohamed

BAGHDAD (AA) - The Iraqi authorities have executed 13 people convicted earlier for committing “terrorist acts”, according to Justice Minister Haidar al-Zamili.

“The death sentences were implemented on Thursday,” al-Zamili said in a Friday statement, stressing that they were carried out in accordance with Iraq’s anti-terrorism laws.

According to the justice minister, those who were executed were convicted earlier for “involvement in kidnappings, bombings and the murder of civilians and for having links to terrorist groups”.

A separate statement issued on Friday by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s office confirmed the executions.

Last year, officials in Baghdad declared that the Daesh terrorist group's presence in Iraq had been all but destroyed following a destructive three-year conflict.

Security forces, however, still carry out frequent counter-terrorism operations that often lead to the arrest of suspected Daesh members.