Parl. suspends session in mourning for Sadrist MP

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: First Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament Sheikh Khaled Atiya decided to put off Saturday’s session in mourning for MP Saleh al-Okeili, who died in a Baghdad explosion two days ago. The Parliament will resume its sessions starting this Sunday, Atiya noted. Atiya accused unnamed “anti-Iraq bodies” of being behind the attack that killed the Sadrist parliamentarian last Thursday. A three-day mourning ceremony will be held starting this Monday at al-Rasheed Hotel, the deputy speaker noted. On Thursday, Sadrist MP Saleh al-Okaili died in hospital of wounds he sustained from an explosion that targeted his car in eastern Baghdad , a spokesperson for the Sadrist bloc said. The parliamentarian died before undergoing a surgery to stop bleeding in his brain. A medical source said earlier that the Shiite lawmaker had fallen into a coma because of bleeding in his brain and would undergo a surgery. The Sadrist bloc holds 30 sears in the 275-member Parliament. SS (S) 1