Gunmen attack office of Iraqi Deputy Speaker

Baghdad, Jan (IANS) Unidentified gunmen attacked the office of Shakhwan Abdullah, the second Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament, in the northern city of Kirkuk, a local police source said.

The incident took place on Wednesday evening when gunmen threw a hand grenade at Abdullah's office in the Rahim Awa neighbourhood in central Kirkuk, some 250 km north of Baghdad, the source told Xinhua news agency.

Abdullah was not in the office during the attack, which caused some damage to the building, he said.

Iraqi security forces cordoned off the office and launched an investigation into the incident.

The incident came after a series of attacks targeting politicians and headquarters of Sunni and Kurdish parties after the Iraqi parliament held its first session on January 9, which witnessed a heated debate between the parliamentary blocs.

During the session, the lawmakers re-elected Mohammed al-Halbousi as parliament speaker, while Hakim al-Zamili and Shakhwan Abdullah won the majority of votes for positions of the first and second deputies, respectively.