Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki went on a rare walkabout in central Baghdad, his office said on Tuesday. During his stroll around the landmark Abu Nuwas street on Monday, Maliki inspected newly-renovated gardens and chatted to residents and young soccer players, the premier's office said in a statement, cited by AFP.
Maliki was accompanied by Interior Minister Jawad Bolani and other senior officials during his tour of Abu Nuwas. The premier was surrounded by bodyguards and the area around Abu Nuwas was sealed off during the tour, a security official said.
During his one-hour visit, Maliki met residents who voiced their grievances, while one mother asked for government aid to assist her son who lost his legs in a blast. Maliki also met teenagers playing football on an open field who complained to him about lack of proper facilities.
Meanwhile, Iraqi troops uncovered 22 bodies in a mass grave northwest of the capital, the U.S. military said Tuesday. The bodies were found Saturday during a joint operation with American forces in the Lake Tharthar area, the military said in a statement.
An Anbar provincial police official, Col. Jubair Rashid Naief, said Tuesday that this was a second mass grave found in the area in less than a month. According to the AP, Naief said the bodies were found in a drainage canal, and that some of the victims were wearing heavy clothes.
After the discovery, U.S. and Iraqi forces launched an operation Sunday, including ground raids and air assaults targeting al-Qaida in the area, the U.S. statement said.
About 30 suspects were detained, it said. Two car bomb facilities and a number of weapons caches also were found, it added.
