Underscoring the growing sectarian nature of the latest Iraqi War, Shi’ite militias executed 15 Sunnis accused of being loyal to ISIS in the Diyala Province capital of Baqubah, just north of Baghdad.
The 15 were kidnapped by the militias over the past week, and publicly executed and hung in the main square of Baqubah, a city that is a mix of Sunnis and Shi’ites, and is on the frontier of the ISIS fight.
The militias had displayed the bodies of slain ISIS fighters before, but this is the first time they killed apparent civilians, and they have posted fighters in the square to prevent local health officials from removing the corpses.
Though the militias control Baqubah itself, most of the surrounding villages have fallen to ISIS, and the group seems likely to make a serious attempt to conquer the provincial capital soon.
It is all in the name of the "most merciful" Allah (peace be upon him).