Followup to report of attack on Russians in Iraq

A Russian diplomat was killed Saturday in an attack in Iraq, and 4 others were kidnapped.

There was a report that the four were subsequently released, but that report was apparently untrue.

From Axis comes a rather bizarre report:

Several Russian analysts brought up a claim, widely published by the media, that the US confidential services inspired this attack to “worsen relations between the Russian and Iraqi people”. They said that Russia for a long time was one of the friendliest states to Iraq, and such an attack was impossible without “foreign incitement”. It was also claimed that these attacks are unprecedented and the attackers perfectly knew whom are they attacking. Some Iraqi officials also sounded similar accusations.

As daily Kommersant newspaper’s source in circles close to the Iraqi government supposed, the attack on the Russian diplomats might by favorable for Washington, which dislikes both Iraqi policy of Moscow, which runs counter to the American one, and excessive, from US point of view, activity of the Russian special services in Iraq. Iraqi ex-Ambassador to Russia Abbas Khalaf stated that the attack on the Russians is a provocation by the US troops. According to Khalaf, the USA “has continued trying to punish Russia for its active political role in the region and especially in Iraq” in such way.

Yikes. I wonder if these Russian "analysts" have their heads wrapped in tin foil.

Certainly, this is a puzzling attack. It's not clear which faction among the insurgency would do this, or why. Russia is not an ally of the US in Iraq.

But to suggest the US would be involved in this attack is nuts.