Police foil robbery attempt on Baghdad jewelry store, but suspects escape killing 3

Foiled assault on Baghdad jewelry store kills 3

BAGHDAD — An audacious robbery attempt in Baghdad and an attack on security forces in the north killed four people and wounded dozens more Wednesday, raising tensions in the run-up to parliamentary elections.

The attacks come as Iraq awaits a final decision on whether hundreds of candidates — most believed to be members of the once-dominant Sunni Arab minority — will be barred from contesting next month’s parliamentary election. U.S and Iraqi officials say barring Sunni candidates from the March 7 vote could cause political instability.

Despite an overall decline in violence since 2008, insurgents have routinely targeted U.S. and Iraqi forces while heavily armed criminals, often former rebels, occasionally stage brazen daylight robberies.

A gang targeted a jewelry store in eastern Baghdad by tossing a grenade into it, while the rest waited outside in a car, police said.

Police nearby heard the commotion, however, and open fire on the men before they could rob the store. In the ensuing gun battle a policeman was killed, along with the storeowner and an assistant.

Six others were wounded and the suspects escaped, said police.

Some insurgents have turned into armed criminal gangs, preying in particular on jewelry stores in heavily armed assaults.

Earlier in the day, a roadside bomb struck a patrol in the disputed northern city of Kirkuk, killing a police lieutenant, a police official said. Two also were wounded in the attack 180 miles (290 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad, he added.

All security officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.