|
Kurds
attack Halabja memorial, one boy was killed, govt offices
|
|
Kurd Net
does not take credit for and is not responsible for the
content of news information on this page |
|
Kurds attack Halabja memorial, one boy was
killed, govt offices
16.3.2006
|
|
|
|
HALABJA, Kurdistan-Iraq, March 16 - Hundreds of
Kurdish protesters destroyed a memorial to the 1988
gas attack in the Iraqi town of Halabja on Thursday,
setting fire to the one-storey museum in a protest
over a lack of local services.
A local hospital doctor said one person had been
killed and eight wounded when Kurdish security
forces opened fire on protesters as they stormed the
museum.
The protest erupted as thousands of residents
gathered for a ceremony marking the 18th anniversary
of the deaths of 5,000 innocent civilian Kurds .
Three local journalists working for Reuters said the
building had been destroyed by fire.
The Kurdish fury in Halabja could be embarrassing
for Kurdish leaders who have managed to keep the
Kurdish north stable as sectarian violence has
ripped apart Iraq.
A 14-year-old boy was killed and six demonstrators
injured when security forces Thursday fired into a
crowd of several thousand Kurds rioting in Halabja
on the anniversary of Saddam Hussein's gas attack on
the Kurdish Iraqi town, an AFP reporter said.
Kurdish officials blamed the disturbances on
foreigners.
Hajem al-Hassani, the outgoing speaker of
parliament, called for a moment's silence in the
chamber to commemorate the Halabja attack, one of
the most potent symbols of Kurdish suffering during
Saddam's three-decade rule.
Kurdish politicians have often used Halabja to try
to unite the ethnic group, whose fortunes changed
after a U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam in 2003 and
elections which swept them to power along with
Shi'ites.
AFP - Reuters
Top |
Kurd Net
does not take credit for and is not responsible for the content of news
information on this page
|
|
|
® 