The Arab League (AL) on Thursday condemned the assassination of Ihab el-Sharif, head of the Egyptian diplomatic mission in Iraq, Egypt's official MENA news agency reported.

The league said in a statement that AL chief Amr Moussa received with deep sadness and shock reports on the killing of the Egyptian diplomat.

Meanwhile, Moussa told Egyptian TV Channel one that Sharif was a martyr of Egyptian diplomacy.

Sharif was the victim of security chaos in Baghdad, Moussa said, expressing condolences to the family of the slain diplomat.

Iraq's al-Qaida group killed Sharif on Thursday, four days after he was kidnapped by the group in Baghdad, according to a videotape posted on an Islamic website.

The militant group, which claimed responsibility on Tuesday for kidnapping Sharif in Baghdad, has in the past beheaded foreign captives.

Last month, Egypt became the first Arab country to respond to a US call for upgrading diplomatic missions in Baghdad.

Sharif was kidnapped by a group of gunmen on Saturday near the Egyptian consulate in al-Rabie Street in western Baghdad, only several weeks after he was named ambassador to Iraq.

Source: Xinhua