Army to probe gangland-style heist

Baghdad: Iraq created a military task force Sunday to battle gangland-style crime after the latest bloodshed in which gunmen with silencer-fitted weapons killed at least seven people during a daylight heist of jewellery stores.

The swift government response to the robberies appeared to reflect worries by Iraqi officials about a rise in violence in recent weeks and their efforts to display a tough stance.

Although attacks remain well below levels of past years, Iraqi authorities are under pressure to show greater competence as US commanders gradually hand over security duties before their planned withdrawal from most urban bases by June 30.

In parliament, meanwhile, lawmakers finally ended a long political impasse by electing a prominent Sunni member as its new speaker, opening the way for lawmakers to start dealing with critical reforms that have been on hold for nearly four months.

However, the fallout from the robberies diverted the government's attention.

Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki ordered a full-scale investigation by a police-military committee.

Hours earlier, he reminded Iraqis that it was impossible to wipe out lawlessness and extremist violence with "one blow."

"There are channels and cells that will stay... so security is not finished by one military strike," he said in a statement.

The Iraqi military said a "criminal gang using weapons equipped with silencers" was behind the slayings in the Shiite-dominated Al Tobji neighbourhood of northern Baghdad.