Iraqi defense minister survives assassination attempt
Iraqi Defense Minister Khalid al-Obeidi has survived an assassination attempt during a trip to the county’s northern regions.
Obeidi’s motorcade was targeted by mortar fire on Monday during a visit to a military operations center in Nineveh, said a statement released on the Iraqi Defense Ministry’s website.
No casualties have been reported from the incident, but the statement notes that the armored vehicle carrying Obeidi was hit by a mortar and sustained some damage.
The minister’s security detail retaliated and opened fire at the point where the attack originated.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but some local news outlets suggest it was carried out by the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.
Obeidi is due for a parliament vote of confidence because he recently accused the parliament speaker and several MPs of corruption.
A subpoena was issued after Obeidi was summoned to the parliament on August 1 to respond to blackmail allegations that were brought up by lawmaker Alia Nasayif.
During the closed parliament session, however, the defense minister accused House Speaker Salim al-Juburi, and at least five other lawmakers, including Nasayif herself, of corruption.
The lawmakers accused the Defense Ministry of wasting billions of dollars in public funds and weakening the country’s armed forces in their fight against Daesh.
Obeidi has to present evidence to prove the charges he brought up against the lawmakers.
Iraq has been engaged in the fight against Daesh terrorists since the summer of 2014, when the militants took control of the major city of Mosul in the north of the country and some other areas in the country.
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