Iraqi minister of culture claims security forces fired on his motorcade

Shafaq News/ Iraqi Minister of Culture and Tourism Ahmed al-Badrani on Wednesday said that his motorcade was fired upon by security forces at a checkpoint in Nineveh.

In a statement to the media, al-Badrani said that the incident occurred at the "al-Aqrab" checkpoint south of Mosul. He said that he had been informed of the incident by the Minister of Interior, who has ordered an investigation.

Al-Badrani said that the motorcade was on a legitimate mission to pick him up in Mosul. He said that security cameras had recorded the incident, and that there was no evidence that the motorcade had violated any laws or regulations.

He also said that the security forces had not been properly informed of the motorcade's arrival.

Al-Badrani's account was disputed by the commander of Nineveh operations, Lieutenant General Abdul-Rahman Ramadan. In a statement to the media, Ramadan said that members of al-Badrani's security detail had attempted to bypass a checkpoint.

Ramadan said that the security forces had received a report that the motorcade had passed through a checkpoint without stopping. He said that the security forces had stopped the motorcade at the "Al-Aqrab" checkpoint to verify its identity.

The officer said that a disagreement had occurred between the security forces and the members of al-Badrani's security detail, which had led to a scuffle.

Ramadan said that the security forces had taken control of the situation and opened an investigation into the incident.