Baghdad vehicle ban for religious gathering

An uneasy silence cloaked the streets of Baghdad today at the start of a two-day vehicle ban aimed at preventing attacks during a major Shiite religious gathering. Seven pilgrims hoping to join the rally were shot dead in a Sunni neighbourhood.

The victims were among a group of Shiites who were sprayed with gunfire by assailants driving in a car late yesterday in Adil neighbourhood in western Baghdad, said police Lt. Maitham Abdul Razzaq.