Body of ISIS commander was handed over to authorities

Iraqi officials said Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri had died in fighting with government troops in Salahuddin province, north of Baghdad, on Friday. Paraded in a glass coffin and flanked by jostling civilians, members of the armed forces and the media scrum, the former right-hand man of Saddam Hussein was handed over to the authorities today. His body was returned to Baghdad and delivered to the Ministry of Health as crowds gathered to get a closer look at the 'King of Clubs'.

The body of Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri was today delivered to the Ministry of Health in Baghdad. Civilians, members of the armed forces and photographers try to get a closer look at the body. Al-Douri was ranked sixth on the US military's list of the 55 most-wanted Iraqis after the offensive to overthrow Saddam and had a $10m bounty on his head.Al-Douri, 72, was reportedly killed near Tikrit, where he was working alongside ISIS militants A glass coffin with transparent panels carrying the body of Al-Douri - with his bright orange beard - was transferred from a van into a government vehicle. The event was broadcast live on state television in Iraq.

Al-Douri, 72, headed the Naqshbandi Order insurgent group, an important faction behind the recent rise of ISIS. He was one of Saddam's most trusted henchmen, helping to lead his 1968 bloodless coup. Both Al-Douri and Saddam came from the same Tikriti tribal background. His daughter was briefly married to Saddam's elder son, Uday, who - together with his brother Qusay - was killed by US forces in Mosul in July 2003.

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