Agence France-Presse:
Kidnappers tortured many of the dozens of hostages seized from a government building and killed some of them, a minister said, warning that Iraq no longer had an effective government.
Higher Education Minister Abed Dhiab al-Ujaili, a Sunni Arab member of the Shiite-led unity government, said some 75 hostages -- 40 of them his ministry's staff -- were in captivity after the raid by militiamen wearing police-style uniforms.
"Those who were set free told us that a few of the hostages have been killed, while most of them were tortured," he told AFP. "I'm very much concerned about their welfare," he said of the remaining hostages.
Ujaili's comments came as the sectarian violence in the capital showed no let-up.
Gunmen stormed a bakery in the mixed Zayuniyah neighbourhood and killed nine Shiite workers in the latest attack by Sunni insurgents on a trade that has traditionally been carried out by the majority community.
Fifteen other civilians were killed in Iraq, including 10 in shootings in Baquba, north of the capital.
One point bears repeating -- "Iraq no longer had an effective government." This is what all those purple fingers got them. Elections don't mean jack if the government is only theoretical.
Tags: news politics Iraq war disaster Bush Rumsfeld
