The body of an Iraqi female activist was found Sunday on a farm in the town of Balad, located in Salahuddin province, independent Iraqi News Agency Voices of Iraq (VOI) reported. A police source speaking on condition of anonymity told VOI that the woman, identified as Rabha al-Hamzawi, had been shot dead by unidentified assailants, dpa reported. Al-Hamzawi was a member of the Manar Women's Association, an active civil society group. Police said the reasons for targeting her were unknown. In a separate incident, a local councillor was abducted by an armed gang Sunday east of Balad in the Yathrib area. "Armed men set a trap on the main road in central Yathrib and kidnapped the man, whose fate remains unknown," the source told VOI. Meanwhile a statement from multi-national forces in southern Iraq disclosed that one Iraqi officer was kidnapped Friday in Basra. The statement, issued by spokesman for British forces in Basra, Major Matthew Bird, said "One officer in the Iraqi army was kidnapped Friday night and the Iraqi army is dealing with the incident." Bird's statement added "British army barracks in Basra were the target of indirect shelling during the past 24 hours, but no human or material loss occurred." Meanwhile a police source in Basra, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told VOI that Basra police forces freed three hostages in different parts of the city Sunday. The three were kidnapped weeks ago by Iraqi gangs, VOI said.
