Burial of unidentified Iraqi bodies sparks sectarian debate

Iraqi Sunnis accuse the government of trying to cover up Shiite violence against them by burying bodies of displaced persons who haven't been identified.
Visitors enter the ancient city of Babylon near Hilla, 100 km (62 miles) south of Baghdad April 5, 2012. In the ancient city of Babylon, once home to the fabled Hanging Gardens, an extended oil pipeline has churned through the dirt and dug up a conundrum: which takes precedence, preserving Iraq's heritage or developing its oil wealth? The definitive answer will probably be decades coming. But for the moment, oil appears to have the edge. The site of ancient Mesopotamia, said by some to be the birthplace of
Visitors enter the ancient city of Babylon near Hilla, 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq, April 5, 2012. - REUTERS/Saad Shalash
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Omar Sattar
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BAGHDAD — Iraq is investigating the circumstances surrounding years-old unidentified human remains that were buried recently in Karbala province. Sunni groups allege the Iraqi government tried to hide evidence of sectarian violence by disposing of the bodies in unmarked graves — a charge the government denies.

The 31 bodies had been held for at least two years in the Babylon province Health Directorate morgue before being turned over earlier this month to a charity for burial in a cemetery in neighboring Karbala province.

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