Baghdad, August 22: Gunmen attacked an Iraqi military checkpoint in the Iraqi capital Saturday, as Iraqi lawmakers scrutinize the readiness of Iraqi forces following a string of bombings in recent weeks that have killed hundreds.
The attack on the checkpoint in northern Baghdad killed two Iraqi soldiers and wounded another, a police official said, and follows a string of bombings in Baghdad that have shaken public confidence in Iraq’s security forces.
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has ordered security tightened and concrete blast walls to remain around potential targets, reversing an order earlier this month to remove the walls in Baghdad by mid-September.
The soldiers were killed at about 6 a.m. when gunmen opened fire during a drive-by on the checkpoint in Azamiyah, the official said. Iraqi security forces earlier this month began dismantling concrete blast walls in Azamiyah, a former Sunni insurgent stronghold, to open major roads.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
Senior Iraqi officials and lawmakers have called for an emergency session of parliament to address security lapses that culminated with truck bombings earlier this week against key government institutions that killed nearly 100.
The Iraqi military has announced it arrested members of the insurgent cell responsible for Wednesday’s attacks but gave no details about the suspects. Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, the chief military spokesman in Baghdad, said on Iraqi state television only that both attacks were carried out by suicide bombers.
—Agencies