Iraqi Minister Hunted for Murder

Police raided the Baghdad home of Iraq's Sunni culture minister yesterday seeking to arrest him for the murder of the sons of a prominent politician during a 2005 assassination attempt, CNN reports. Assad al-Hashimi, who was not in his house, said he was being unfairly targeted. He was implicated by two alleged accomplices who reportedly  confessed under torture.

Killed were the sons of Mithal al-Alusi, leader of  the Iraqi Democratic National Party. "When they want to get rid of anybody, the easiest way to do that is to charge him with terrorist activities,"  Al-Hashimi told Al-Jazeera. A Sunni political group called the "false" accusations part of an effort to marginalize Sunnis. (More Assad al Hashimi stories.)