Daretu subdistrict mayor wounded in Bardarash shooting

BARDARASH — The mayor of Daretu subdistrict in Erbil’s Dashti Hawler district and another man were injured in a shooting Thursday morning outside a bakery in central Bardarash, according to local officials and health authorities. The suspected gunman fled the scene and remains at large.

The incident occurred as Daretu Mayor Tahsin Ismat, 52, was reportedly standing in line to buy bread when he and a 22-year-old civilian, Harun Mohammed, were shot. Both were taken to Akre emergency hospital and are in stable condition.

“The Daretu subdistrict mayor was hit by three bullets — two in the thigh and one in the arm,” said Nechirvan Fakhradin, spokesperson for the Akre district health directorate. “The civilian was shot in the thigh. Both are receiving treatment and their condition is stable.”

A local official in Bardarash told 964media that the motive behind the shooting remains unclear. “The motive remains unknown, and the suspect has not yet been arrested,” the official said.

Police have launched an investigation, but no arrests had been made as of Thursday afternoon.