Baghdad - Gunmen wearing military uniforms shot dead 29 villagers and wounded four others in Diyala province, the Iraq News Agency (INA) quoted an Iraqi security official as saying Tuesday. According to Ragheb Rawi, a spokesman for security operations in Diyala province, the men - believed to be extremists escaped from the US-led troop surge - cordoned off Duwailiya village, north of Baquba, overnight Monday, killing the victims in their homes.
The ethnically-mixed Diyala province is a stronghold for Iraqi armed groups, particularly those belonging to the al-Qaeda terrorist network in Iraq.
Last month, more than 10,000 US and Iraqi troops launched a major offensive in Baquba city aimed at combatting militants and terrorists suspected of being part of the al-Qaeda network.
Baquba, the capital of Diyala province, is 60 kilometres north-east of the capital Baghdad.
