Top UN envoy deplores assassination of Iraqi parliamentarian

The top United Nations official in Iraq has strongly condemned the “shocking” assassination of parliamentarian Harith Al-Ubaidi, who was reportedly shot as he left a mosque in western Baghdad.

Mr. Al-Ubaidi, who headed the Accordance Front-Al Tawaffuq in the Iraqi Council of Representatives, had just left Friday prayers when he was gunned down yesterday, according to media reports.

Staffan de Mistura, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Iraq, described the killing as “particularly deplorable and a tragic loss.”

Mr. Al-Ubaidi was known for his ability to work with all the different groups and political blocs in the country, Mr. de Mistura said, adding that he also worked tirelessly to ensure the rights of detainees and for the enactment of the Human Rights Commission Law.

The Special Representative urged Iraqi authorities to pursue the perpetrators and bring them to justice, according to a statement issued by the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).