UN employee killed in Iraq’s Kirkuk

BAGHDAD

A staff member of the UN Assistance Mission to Iraq (UNAMI) was killed with a sharp object in Iraq’s northern Kirkuk province, an Iraqi police officer said on Sunday.

“The body of a Filipino employee working with UNAMI was found at Kirkuk airport,” police lieutenant Murad al-Jumaili told Anadolu Agency.

He identified the employee as Ronald Santos.

According to al-Jumaili, the UNAMI employee was stabbed by a knife.

The motives behind the death remain unknown.

Neither the UN nor the Iraqi authorities issued any comment regarding the employee’s death.

Earlier this month, a Shia armed group called Awliya al-Dam threatened to target UN vehicles in Iraq if they were used by US forces.

On Friday, Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called for an investigation into repeated attacks on foreign missions in Iraq and bringing the perpetrators to justice.

The call came after two Shia groups, Iraqi Hezbollah and al-Nujaba, threatened to launch more attacks against US forces in Iraq.

In recent weeks, several attacks targeted the US Embassy in Iraq, US forces, and other troops involved in the International Coalition against Deash/ISIS terror group in Iraq.

* Bassel Barakat contributed to this report from Ankara