A senior official of a government department that manages Sunni mosques was killed this evening by unidentified gunmen.

Naji Mohammed al-Eithawi was driving home when the gunmen opened fire from a passing vehicle.

Al-Eithawi, who was 55, acted as a spokesman for the Sunni Endowments and was a regular contributor to Iraqi newspapers.

The motive for his killing was not immediately known, but Sunni and Shiite clerics have been frequent targets of unresolved murders in Iraq.

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