Russian diplomat was killed in Baghdad

In Baghdad, a Russian diplomat has been killed today, a representative of the Iraq Ministry of Internal Affairs said. Four more Russian diplomats are abducted, reports ITAR-TASS.

According to Reuters, three cars blocked the road along which Russian diplomats drove.

The militants opened fire on a Russian car. At the same time, one diplomat died, four more were stolen, the agency reports. The incident occurred in the Mansur area.

"We confirm that one diplomat died and four are abducted. But we do not yet give comments," an employee of the Russian embassy, ​​who answered a phone call at the consular department of the embassy, ​​told Interfax.

The Foreign Ministry takes measures to free the abducted

The Russian Foreign Department came into contact with the Iraqi authorities, the command of multinational forces and other parties to liberate Russian diplomats stolen in Iraq, told Interfax on Saturday in the information and press of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

"At the moment, the Russian Foreign Ministry and the embassy in Iraq are taking comprehensive measures, including in contacts with the Iraqi authorities, the command of multinational forces and other partners who can provide assistance in the release of stolen diplomats," the DIP of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized.

The department confirmed the information that on Saturday at 13:45 Moscow time, "unknown people attacked a car, in which, during the performance of official duties, there were employees of the Russian foreign section."

“As a result of this action, one person died, four are stolen,” the report said. "We express our condolences to the relatives and friends of the Russian employee who died in Iraq," the Russian Foreign Ministry noted.

The operational headquarters was created in the Russian Foreign Ministry. The headquarters works in cooperation with all relevant Russian departments. Contact phone headquarters (495) 244-24-71.

Three years after the invasion of American troops in Iraq in this country, according to the US special group to combat people's abductors, 439 foreigners were stolen. Among them are representatives of diplomatic missions of different countries.

Earlier, unknown, under the threat of weapons, captured the diplomat from Saudi Arabia in the same area of ​​El-Mansur, whom they held for two weeks and released at the end of May.

Responsibility for all the abductions of people was taken by the Al-Qaeda unit operating in Iraq.

The opinions of Russian experts about the incident in Baghdad dispersed

Military expert Valery Manilov, head of the Institute of Geopolitical Information, believes that the roots of what happened is "in a general situation in Iraq and in hopelessness, in which the initiators of the war against Iraq drove themselves."

“This action was planned and carried out by chance,” Manilov said, formerly the first deputy chief of the Russian General Staff, on Saturday Interfax.

He suggested that behind the attack on Russian diplomats in Baghdad, there can be forces that are striving to "dilute" anti -American sentiments among Iraqi resistance. "The purpose of this action is to find a distracting maneuver in order to smear anti -American sentiments among resistance in Iraq. Therefore, I do not exclude similar provocations against diplomats of other states," Manilov said.

At the same time, he said that Russia should currently use all its international potential to investigate the incident.

Another opinion is held by a political scientist, a member of the Council of the Moscow Carnegie Center Alexei Malashenko. "What happened to Russian diplomats in Baghdad, firstly, is a strong blow to Russian politics in Iraq," he said.

At the same time, Malashenko said that Sunday should wait, because people who have captured Russian diplomats may make sure that these are Russian diplomatic mission and will let them go.

In turn, the chairman of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, Sergei Karaganov, believes that the abduction of Russian diplomats is a action directed not against Russia.

"Based on the fact that this is not the first case of an attack on diplomats, most likely this is another sign that in Iraq continues something middle between the civil war and ordinary devastation. This is a superchais," Karaganov said.