BAGHDAD: Ezzat Ibrahim al Douri, former right-hand man to late Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, has been reported killed by Iraqi forces and Shia militias.

Douri was killed in a military operation, Raed al Jubouri, the governor of Salahuddin province, said. Al Arabiya, a pan-Arab television network, showed images of a dead man who looked like Douri. Baghdad has mistakenly announced Ezzat al Douri’s death several times before, but this time photos are circulating showing a man with features and red hair like his. Al Jubouri said DNA from the body would be tested and results released “very soon”.

“The mastermind of terrorist operations has been killed and he is Ezzat al Douri,” Al Jubouri told Arabiya TV. “Al Douri is the biggest mastermind behind all attacks that undermined Iraq. This news will have an impact on the morale of the fighters.”

After the 2003 US-led invasion, Douri was ranked sixth on the US military’s list of 55 most wanted Iraqis and a $10 million reward was offered for his capture. Iraqi and US officials accused him of organising and leading the resistance insurgency that swept Iraq in 2005-07.

He evaded capture during the long US occupation as other Saddam aides were killed or put on trial and sectarian civil war engulfed the country.—Reuters

Karim al Nouri, a leader in the Badr organisation and spokesman for Shia militias fighting IS, said his forces had been involved in the operation, although they thought the target was the leader of Islamic State, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi.

“We received intelligence from our sources that a VIP was in the city of Hawija and we were waiting to ambush him. Based on our intelligence, it was believed that the man was Al Baghdadi, but it turned out to be Al Douri.”

“He was the second man after Saddam Hussein and was the coordinator between the Baath party and IS. The body is now taken for identification, but we are certain it is Al Douri,” Al Nouri added.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2015

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