Gunmen massacre 15 men in Iraq

Gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms entered a village west of Baghdad early today, removed families from their homes and opened fire on the men, killing 15 of them, an Iraqi general and a Kurdish political party said.

The victims were Kurdish Shiites, according to a statement posted on the website of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.

The gunmen entered the village of Hamid Shifi, about 60 miles west of Baghdad and forced families from their homes, said Brig. Gen. Nazim Sherif.

The assailants then separated the women and children, ordered the men to stand in a single file and gunned them down, he said.

Sherif said villagers had received no threats before the attack, which he blamed on al Qaida.

The village is in Diyala province, an area northeast of Baghdad where violence has risen sharply in the past six months.