Islamic State sniper kills Iraqi journalist in Kirkuk

Ahmed Hajr Oglo, 30, was a father of two; city turned into war zone as Kurdish forces defend it against IS conquest attempts

KIRKUK, Iraq — A jihadist sniper killed an Iraqi journalist in Kirkuk Friday during clashes between the security forces and fighters from the Islamic State group, the police and his channel said.

Ahmed Hajr Oglo, 30, was hit by a sniper bullet to the chest and died of his wounds, a colonel in the Kirkuk police told AFP. The channel confirmed the reporter’s death.

“Journalist Ahmed Oglo, chief correspondent at Turkmeneli, was killed by a Daesh sniper as he covered the incidents in Kirkuk,” the colonel said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

Abdelkader Mohammed, a friend and colleague at Turkmeneli TV, confirmed the journalist’s death.

Before dawn on Friday, dozens of IS fighters armed with rifles, grenades and explosive vests attacked Kirkuk, an ethnically mixed city under Kurdish control.

They used mosque loudspeakers to broadcast messages supporting the “caliphate.” Suicide bombers also attacked several government buildings, including the city’s main police headquarters.

The brazen raid sparked a response by Kurdish and other security forces across the city, which was turned into a war zone and where fighting was still ongoing as night fell.

Security officials said a number of IS attackers had already been killed and added they were confident they would hunt down the rest but warned that snipers were the main obstacle.

Oglo was a father of two.