Shiite city politician killed in northern Iraq

[Barrett808]

BAGHDAD (AP) — Gunmen killed a member of the city council and a bodyguard in the northern city of Kirkuk on Monday, Iraqi police said.

The Shiite councilor, Aggar Al-Taweel, was shot several times in the head as he drove to the weekly meeting of the city council, said police chief Torhan Yussif. The gunmen fired from a red car and fled.

Al-Taweel, who founded an Arab political party that later splintered, was known for frank opinions and he often outspoken in council debates.

Oil-rich Kirkuk has seen increasing ethnic tensions, occasionally erupting into violence, as Kurds, Arabs and ethnic Turkmen jostle for domination.

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http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-03-15-iraq_x.htm