A senior judge working on the special Iraqi tribunal set up to try former president Saddam Hussein and members of his regime was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Tuesday, officials said.
Barawiz Mahmoud was stepping out of his home in Baghdad's Adhamiya district when he was killed. His son, a lawyer who accompanied him, was also killed in the attack.
This is the first assassination of a judge working for the tribunal, although other senior judges have been killed in recent months.
Mahmoud's murder came a day after the special tribunal referred its first charges against Baath Party officials.
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The tribunal had said it had enough evidence to put on trial five former officials, including Saddam's half-brother, Barzan Ibrahim al-Hassan al-Tikriti.
The tribunal was set up in December 2003 to try members of the former regime for crimes and other violations.
The tribunal comprises around 50 trial judges, investigating magistrates, prosecutors and appeals court judges.
Mahmoud's position in the tribunal was not known.
