Leading Sunni official in Iraq hit by roadside bomb
by Dan Morse and Aziz Alwan
The Washington Post
A convoy carrying a leading Sunni government official was hit with a roadside bomb Sunday night, injuring his body guards, according to the official and a police colonel from the heavily Sunni area where the blast was reported.
Finance Minister Rafe al-Essawi survived the blast, which occurred at 9:15 p.m. in the Salahuddin province north of Baghdad.
Responding to inquiries via text message, Essawi would not say if he thought his convoy was targeted or the attack was random.
“We will send a letter to the Ministry of Interior to investigate,” he wrote via text.
According to Col. Jassim Abdulla, a deputy police chief in Salahuddin, Essawi was returning home to Baghdad. Abdulla said three of Essawi’s bodyguards, two officers and one soldier were taken to a hospital in Tikrit.