Nine severed heads found north of Baghdad

Nine severed heads were found in a volatile area north of Baghdad today.

Nine severed heads were found in a volatile area north of Baghdad today.

Police said the heads were found in plastic bags put in cardboard crates in the city of Baquba, north of Baghdad. No further details were immediately available.

The find comes three days after a similar discovery in the same Iraqi province

On Saturday, police said they found the cut-off heads of seven cousins and a mosque Imam by the side of the road near Baquba.

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Elsewhere in Iraq, embattled Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said today he would release 2,500 prisoners with no clear evidence against them or who were mistakenly detained, in a move to help reach "national reconciliation".

"We hope they will abide by not vioently objecting to the political process. This is a strong move which will encourage others," he said, in a clear reference to the minority Sunni community, which forms the backbone of the insurgency against his US-backed government.

He said the prisoners would be released from US-run detention centres and Iraqi custody