IS ‘danger’ grips Iraqi desert

BAGHDAD: Seven shepherds and farmers have been found murdered after the Islamic State Jihadist group kidnapped dozens of people in the desert region of central Iraq, a local official said on Tuesday.

In a renewed threat to the region, IS attacked several remote villages and seized 30 locals from their homes, Ali al-Nawaf, a municipal council chief, told AFP. "The bodies of seven of them have been found and security forces are searching for the others," he said.

The victims, in pictures posted on social media, were discovered with their hands tied behind their backs and eyes bound with red-and-white keffiyeh headscarves.