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Suspect in shooting of Turkish diplomat arrested

Suspect in shooting of Turkish diplomat arrested | iNFOnews.ca
This image posted by RUDAW Facebook TV, an Irbil-based Kurdish broadcaster, shows broken glass shows in the window of a restaurant that was the scene of a shooting, in Irbil, Iraq, Wednesday, July 17, 2019. Turkey's state-run news agency says a Turkish diplomat working at Ankara's consulate in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil was killed during a shooting attack inside the restaurant there. (RUDAW Facebook TV via AP)

IRBIL, Iraq – Kurdish security officials say they have arrested the lead suspect in the shooting of a Turkish diplomat in Iraq’s semi-autonomous region.

The Kurdistan Region Security Council published a picture of the suspect Saturday, saying he was arrested by security and counterterrorism units following a large-scale operation. Kurdish security had identified him as a 27-year-old who hails from Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish city of Diyarbakir.

A gunman opened fire in a restaurant in Irbil on Wednesday, killing the Turkish diplomat and an Iraqi national. There was no claim of responsibility although suspicion fell on Kurdish militants, who operate in parts of Iraq’s Kurdish region and have waged an insurgency against Turkey.

Ankara said Friday it launched new airstrikes against Kurdish rebels in Iraq’s Kurdish region in response to the killing.

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Abbey Westbury

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