According to the Iraqi authorities, some 25 criminals attacked a convoy of wedding vehicles in a north Baghdad street, killing 15 children aged between two and 12 by hanging massive weights around their necks and throwing them in the river to drown, Xinhua reported.
The criminals also raped and killed all the women at the wedding, including the bride. They also killed the bridegroom and dozens of men, the authorities said.
“Twelve prisoners out of the 15 were executed early morning, including their leader Firas al-Jubouri,” said Iraq’s deputy justice minister Bushu Ibrahim.
“They are all members of al-Qaeda terrorist group who were involved in the crime of Dujail wedding,” he added.
The massacre had occurred during the peak of sectarian strife between the Shiite and Sunni communities in 2006, which left hundreds of thousands of people killed by the reprisal attacks.
Published 24 November 2011, 18:27 IST