Gunmen Kill 14 In Baghdad Gold Heist

Iraqi police say gunmen shot dead 14 people, mainly goldsmiths, and made off with gold and cash in a shopping area of Baghdad today.

The robberies took place on a busy street lined with shops in southwest Baghdad, usually heavily protected by Iraqi security forces.

Police said it had defused a number of bombs left by the gunmen.

Overall violence in Iraq has dropped sharply since the sectarian slaughter of 2006-07 but bombings and shootings are still a regular occurrence.

compiled from agency reports