Top Iraqi general formally appointed as Baghdad security chief

Iraq’s premier has reportedly named a senior general as new head of the Baghdad Operations Command after he sacked high-ranking officials in charge of security in the capital in the wake of the Daesh-claimed bloodshed in Karradah.

On Thursday, Major General Jalil Jabbar al-Rubaie formally replaced Lieutenant General Abdul Amir al-Shammari to lead Baghdad’s security operations under a decree by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, local media reported.

Abadi issued the decree during a meeting of senior security commanders in Baghdad, where they also discussed plans to pursue the terrorists and promote the security situation in the violence-hit city.

On July 8, the Iraqi leader fired three senior security officials of Baghdad, including Shammari, after a huge bomb explosion ripped through a busy shopping district in the capital’s Karradah neighborhood and left nearly 300 people dead.

Iraqi Interior Minister Mohammad Gabban also stepped down following the fatal blast, blaming a lack of communications between multiple forces in charge of the Baghdad security.

SS