29 Prostitutes Slaughtered in Baghdad Brothel; Locals Blame Islamic Extremist Group
Gunmen wearing camouflage recently stormed two apartment buildings in Baghdad, Iraq, slaughtering 29 people, the majority of whom were prostitutes working in a brothel.
The attack happened Saturday, when a group of gunmen carrying firearms with silencers burst into the apartment compound in the neighborhood of Zayouna on the city's east side, executing 29 prostitutes inside as well as two men. The words, "This is the fate of any prostitution," were scrawled on one of the apartment's doors.
Police are now reportedly investigating the crime, and the building has been cordoned off, with only one entrance left open to residents of the apartment building. A police officer speaking on the condition of anonymity recalled the horrific, bloody scene of the crime to the South China Morning Post.
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"When we walked up the stairs, we saw a couple of women's bodies and blood streaming down the stairs," the police officer said. "We entered a flat and found bodies everywhere, some lying on the sofa, some on the ground, and one woman who apparently had tried to hide in a cupboard in the kitchen, shot to death there."
Although the police have not pinned responsibility for the attack on any group, many media outlets and critics suggest the local Shiite militia, an extremist Islamic group, is responsible for the massacre. The group has previously been connected to similar attacks in May 2013 in the same area, where militants attacked brothels and liquor stores. These businesses were targeted due to Islamic laws' opposition to alcohol and prostitution.
According to The Daily Beast, locals in the area suspect members of the Shiite group Asaib Ahl al-Haq, also known as the "League of the Righteous," is responsible for the attack. The group holds significant authority in the area of Zayouna and often seeks to punish what it sees as moral crimes that contradict the teachings of Islam.
Although members of the extremist group seek to punish immoral acts such as prostitution, those living in Zayouna argue that the militant group holds a double standard regarding prostitution. An Iraqi man selling water near the scene of the crime told The Daily Beast that the same militants who attacked the brothel have previously visited the apartment complex for services.
"Everyone knew it was prostitutes there; the militia killed them," the vendor told The Daily Beast. "The same ones who killed them used to visit," he added. The media outlet notes that although it is unclear how the vendor would have had this information, it is a locally-held view that the attacking militants were also customers of the brothel.
According to the South China Morning Post, the Iraqi government has a delicate and complicated relationship with local Shiite militant groups. The extremist groups have reportedly become more active in Baghdad since the invasion of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant [ISIS] in the country about a month ago.
As Iraq's government scrambles to combat the ISIS, it often employs Shiite volunteers to help with national security. Although these volunteers often work in alliance with the Iraqi government, some extremist members are seeking to attain more power than the government over local communities and impose strict Islamic law.
