Baqouba community leader dies in car accident

Baqouba community leader dies in car accident
By Joseph Giordono, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Wednesday, January 16, 2008

The leader of the Baqouba “concerned citizens” group was killed in a vehicle crash after attending a security meeting with Iraqi and American troops, officials said Tuesday.

Haji Uday was the most senior leader of an armed civilian group that has aligned itself with American and Iraqi security forces to patrol neighborhoods in the city, north of Baghdad.

In recent months, U.S. military officials have pushed the groups as one of the new pillars of security in Iraq.

Typically, members of the groups are paid around $300 a month by U.S. forces, though their arms are not provided by the Iraqi or American militaries. While the groups have been largely Sunni, Shiite groups also formed in some parts of the country.

According to U.S. military officials, Uday was killed Sunday when his vehicle collided with a dump truck.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=51663